Mumbai: The police station that slows down life in Vasai-Virar

The Tulinj police station floods every monsoon, say cops. Pic/Hanif Patel

For years, cops at the Tulinj police station have been dealing with the stinking nullah flowing underneath, health issues and traffic jams that they say cause hindrance to their work. They requested the MBVV police chief for relocation in 2021, following which the files reached Mantralaya. However, they have been stuck since returning to the civic body.

Not just the cops, the commuters travelling between Vasai and Virar via Nalasopara East struggle too.

Tulinj police station is built on a nullah and a plot that had been marked for a garden. Pics/Hanif Patel

Rajendra Kamble, the then senior inspector at Tulinj police station, wrote to the then Mira Bhayandar Vasai Virar (MBVV) commissioner of police (CP) Sadanand Date on January 28, 2021 for relocation. Kamble is now the in-charge of Virar police station.

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The files moved to the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) and then to the Urban Development Department in Mantralaya.

As the area is close to the Nalasopara railway station, there is a traffic jam, especially during peak hours

"After the intervention of the Urban Development Department, the Vasai Virar City Municipal Corporation (VVCMC) identified an 8-guntha plot," said an officer.

However, the files, a copy of which is with mid-day, have been gathering dust, thanks to bureaucratic hurdles, cops alleged.
Many cops, including those who were deployed at the Tulinj police station in the past, shared with mid-day the issues they faced. The building is built on a drain and a garden plot, said officers.

The problems

"Initially, it was a chowkie under the Nalasopara police station, but after the population started to increase in the area, it was converted into Tulinj police station on March 5, 2015. We faced many health issues, like allergies causing sneezing and coughing. Then there was the mosquito menace. Since the police station was constructed on a nullah, there is always a stink. It was really hard to work there," said an officer requesting anonymity.

"The population within the jurisdiction of Tulinj police station is around 2.5 lakh," said another officer.

"The situation becomes horrible during the monsoon due to waterlogging. The water level goes up to 3 feet and takes days to recede. Every time it rained heavily, we had to move files, computers, etc. to prevent damage. I am sure the situation remains the same even today," said a cop who was once posted at Tulinj police station.

"The police station must be shifted, as half of it is built on the nullah and the remaining half on a garden plot, which was acquired illegally," the officer added.

An officer currently deployed there said, "Besides everything, we have to face traffic jams during peak hours. Because we are located close to the Nalasopara railway station, there is haphazard parking of auto-rickshaws. We struggle when we have to rush to a crime scene, especially in the evenings."

A source in the MBVV police headquarters told mid-day that former CP Date "took personal interest to move the files and spoke to all the departments concerned to identify a fresh location, but now, everything is moving at a snail's pace."
"The VVCMC identified this plot as a vegetable market and promised that the police station would be built on the first floor. But, the construction work has not started yet," he added. "Once the existing building of Tulinj police station is demolished, the traffic issue will be resolved," said a senior police officer.

Renovation work is currently underway at the existing police station and the civic body has spent around R10 lakh, said an officer. "It's of no use, as the monsoon will cause damage again. We want the relocation at the earliest, but the files are stuck in red tape," the officer added.

History

The existing building had been illegally constructed around four decades ago and was used as a hideout by the goons of an influential criminal, said a businessperson in Nalasopara. "They stored their guns in the building and no one dared say a word," he added.

"The police woke up only after a murder in Nalasopara around three decades ago. They threw the goons out and converted the building into a police chowkie," a source said.

Zonal Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Pournima Chougule-Shringi, who recently took charge, said, "We are in touch with the municipal corporation for allocation of a plot. At present, we have been given the 8-guntha plot but the civic officials have also planned to construct a fruit market."

"For the smooth functioning of a police station, we need a dedicated plot which can be further handed over to the housing department for construction of required numbers of rooms for female cops, detection room, police lock-up, cabin of senior inspector, etc. Once everything is clear, a building will be constructed for Tulinj police station," she said.

A senior civic official told mid-day, "During our discussion with the senior police officer, we had told them that the 8-guntha plot is dedicated for a fruit market. But if they need it for a police station, they need to get the reservation of the plot changed with the intervention of the Urban Development Department. When that is done, the public works department (PWD) can construct a building for the police department."

"This discussion was taken more than a year ago. I will have to check the documents for the current status," the official added, requesting anonymity.

2015
When Tulinj police station was formed