No construction, only park: Mumbai civic body chief Chahal assures RWITC

Open House in progress at the Mahalaxmi Racecourse

The Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) held an Open House meeting with club members, the club committee and the Municipal Commissioner I S Chahal, at the club headquarters at Mahalaxmi Racecourse on Thursday. Chahal said there is a proposal to extend the racecourse lease to 2023 and then to 2053, which is a straight 30 years. He also assured that there would be no construction activity on the 120 acres that BMC wished to acquire.

The meeting had an express purpose that the air is cleared and members have a clear view, before voting on the issue at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) on January 30. With the committee on the dais, the audience listened as Chahal brought up a long list of projects in the State, including the Coastal Road and the Metro besides others.

No suspicion

Coming back to the racecourse specifically, Chahal said the area to be taken from the racecourse will be retained as a public garden/theme park. "The BMC wants 120 acres. The city needs a world-class park on the lines of London's Hyde Park or New York's Central Park," he said.

Club members said the racecourse is already used by the public and there is no need for a park. File pic

Seeking to allay suspicions about any kind of construction, Chahal referenced the Coastal Road that gives the people 175 acres of open space. "We had asked for two helipads on this public garden of 175 acres brought about by the Coastal Road, but that was denied to us by the Supreme Court. That is how strict this is."

Chahal reiterated on the mike and through the visual presentation, "Forget any construction happening on this land, our intentions are very clear. There has to be unhindered visibility of the races. Let us and the RWITC coexist. We are completely transparent. We are with and behind the RWITC; the racecourse is an honour for Mumbai. RWITC must exist for all time."

Chahal also said that the civic body will, "move, refurbish the current stables," which he claimed were in a "dilapidated condition". He also said that the racecourse would be cleared of squatters, while slum encroachment on the land would be removed and the reclaimed land would be given back to the RWITC. Chahal stressed that there is no clandestine intention. "There is no question of any builder/developer to come in. This public park is for everybody. Even the members have full access to the park. We are not building any boundaries or walls, keeping anybody out."

Questions remain

There were several questions and also opposition to the renovation of stables. Some members asked why the stables which are heritage and beautiful, need to be refurbished at all. Status quo must be maintained, as there is no dilapidation at all and these are in fact, not shabby. Chahal also said that a theme park is merely a public park. "The theme park does not mean there will be construction on a specific theme, but it will be an open, public park." Another question was about the ‘Bombay Eye', akin to the London Eye (a massive Ferris wheel) offering views of London, coming up on the site, and that this would naturally mean construction. Chahal though claimed, "The Bombay Eye project is not hard and fast. It can be made elsewhere."

Current status

Several members pressed on that the racecourse grounds are open to the public, it is not exclusionist or elitist, even the public does use the centre of the park, walking track etc. In that sense, it is a public park. To the argument that there is a "psychological barrier" for the general public to use this space, Chahal said even he feels that barrier, to which a member said, "I do not buy that there is a psychological barrier. Come here and see at least 20,000 people using this space for exercise and recreational use." Several arguments were also made about the Amateur Riders Club (ARC) being allowed to exist. A member said that there is a sense that "the club is being bulldozed and that if members do not agree to certain conditions, then the lease will not be renewed."

Go ahead
The mammoth meet which stretched into late evening had the municipal commissioner pressing ahead with the coexistence credo. Yet, the pulse of the public through the Open House did show there was a trust deficit, given the coveted racecourse land and an unfortunate past record of open spaces in Mumbai being gobbled up by developers.

Chahal claimed that there was no SRA scheme coming up on the land, allaying yet another fear. The government was willing to put its promises of no construction in writing and that "nothing will come up here except a garden". However, given the emotion the racecourse, the green emerald of SoBo arouses, the battles of the past to save it, a few days will show us whether the members would like to bet on the government's claims.

30 years
Period of racecourse lease extension

120
Acres of area MCGM wants to build park