Bombay HC directs MHADA to evacuate the building, demolish it and merge it with SBUT
The residents of Adamji Peerbhoy Chawl in Bhendi Bazaar. Pic/Suresh Karkera
After spending months living in fear of their building collapsing, the residents of Adamji Peerbhoy Chawl in Bhendi Bazaar finally got relief from the Bombay High Court and the tenants were able to move out last week. In the order issued in October, the court directed MHADA to evacuate the 'unsafe' building and demolish it after which it will be merged with the Saifee Burhani Upliftment Trust's (SBUT) cluster redevelopment project.
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Tired of arguing with their landlord about the re-development of the building, the tenants decided to approach the Bombay High Court for relief. Abizer Attarwala, one of the residents, said that their building has been in a terrible condition for a while and portions of the ceiling had been collapsing.
"Our landlord didn't want to sell the building to SBUT since he wanted more money. In all of this, our lives are at stake. We asked the court to let SBUT and the landlord fight it out but help us evacuate the building," he said. mid-day had reported on the dangerous condition of the building in July 2019.
The order, issued on October 15, mentioned the findings of the structural audit report which stated that 'the building is more than 100 years old and has completely outlived its economic life'. The court directed MHADA 'to give temporary accommodation to the occupants/tenants of the building and thereafter take further steps for the demolition of the said unsafe building'.
While MHADA had offered transit accommodation, Attarwala said that the tenants had opted to take rent from SBUT instead. Bhimrao Kale, executive engineer of MHADA said, "Based on the court's orders, we had offered transit accommodation in Anjeerwadi. Those who wanted to find their own accommodation took rent from SBUT," he said, adding that they would start demolishing the building soon.
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