South Mumbai residents will file a writ petition against the construction of VVIP jetty near the Gateway of India. Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar , Mumbai South MP Arvind Sawant and MLA Abu Asim Azmi also joined the protest and assured the residents that the jetty will not be constructed near the heritage site.
On Saturday, residents of South Mumbai came out in huge numbers wearing black clothes to oppose the construction of a new VVIP jetty near the Gateway of India. Over 500 residents joined at Real Party Hall at Colaba’s Arthur Bunder Road and unanimously voted that they will not allow the construction of the new jetty.
Residents of Colaba oppose proposed Passenger Jetty/ VVIP Jetty near Radio Club at Ga
The public meeting was also attended by Maharashtra assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar, Mumbai South MP Arvind Sawant as well as MLA and Colaba-resident Abu Asim Azmi, all of them assured the residents that the jetty will not be constructed. The political leaders also signed their participation to mark the opposition against the jetty.
Narwekar assured the protesting residents that he is with them and stated that he had earlier supported the people’s movement against a similar jetty near the Arthur Rd four years ago. He said that constructing the jetty at Princess Dock makes more sense to create an integrated water transport system at one place like Singapore, Dubai, Greece and other countries across the world.
Rahul Narwekar joins Residents of Colaba oppose proposed Passenger Jetty/ VVIP Jetty near Radio Club at GaResidents of Colaba oppose proposed Passenger Jetty/ VVIP Jetty near Radio Club at Ga
“I am of the belief that one should not destroy one cannot make. This is a heritage and iconic promenade which dates back to historical events of the country. It’s a matter of pride for the nation. Protecting this promenade is paramount to be as it is to all of you. All of us stand with the residents of Colaba,” he said.
However, the residents are not much impressed with the speaker’s assurance as they believe that they are getting only verbal assurances. “Narwekar has been saying he is with the people but there is no confirmation whether he will be stopping the project. If he stopped the work of Jamshedji Jetty, he should also be able to stop the work of this VVIP jetty,. There was no public consultation before the construction work began. It was only after The public outcry that we were called to the Vidhan Bhavan,” said a local resident who had participated in the protest.
Jennifer Shetty, AGNI coordinator for A ward, said, “This is a public movement to shift the jetty from proposed away. We are not against infrastructure development but there are numerous issues in the locality which should be addressed first. The stone wall near the Gateway of India is breaking and that should be the priority rather than a new VVIP jetty. The locality cannot be a tourist and transport spot at the same time.”
The residents have alleged that the Mumbai Maritime Board has not obtained relevant permissions from the concerned authorities and have not followed various compliances for the construction. On these lines, they will approach the Bombay High Court by next week requesting a stay against the construction.
“The project is arbitrary and unconstitutional. According to us, the jetty is being constructed for extreme reasons, which is to serve the VVIPs. We will request the court to grant a stay against the construction,” said advocate Prerak Choudhary, representing the residents.
The residents have planned to meet the state’s minister of ports development Nitesh Rane on April 10 and mark their objection against the jetty. The residents will raise the points of damaging the iconic view of Gateway of India, loss of open space and increased traffic in the locality.
Rocky Lobo, a resident of Colaba, said, “We are already suffering from traffic and pollution. On public holidays, there is no space to drive to our homes and we are forced to walk in the locality. This is a heritage place and the construction of a jetty will damage the front line heritage buildings including the Gateway of India. If you are not able to make these heritage structures again, at least don’t destroy them.”
