Another catastrophe in waiting? - Over 9,000 hutments vulnerable to landslides
25 Jun, 2013The reply to an application filed under the Right to Information (RTI) Act has revealed that shanties in at least 249 spots in Mumbai are vulnerable to landslides during monsoon. The reply to the application shows that there are 22,483 hutments in Mumbai in 327 hilly areas, most of them vulnerable to landslides. The RTI reply also states that 3,986 huts in the city are located in 49 extremely dangerous locations.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Mumbai suburban collector's office had jointly conducted a survey in 2010, according to which out of 22,483 huts, 9,657 needed to be shifted urgently. The shifting of hutments from such unsafe locations was laso recommended by the Mumbai Slum Improvement Board but the suggestion was never executed.
The RTI reply also stated that the unsafe shanties had received notices to vacate but they have not been moved. The BMC officials said that the civic body can’t move the shanties as the state government first needs to verify the pre-1995 shanties and provide alternate accommodation to those eligible.