The authorities on Wednesday demolished the third floor of two buildings that were newly constructed in the funnel zone along the flight path of the T2 runway at Santacruz. On May 19, the MMRDA issued eviction notices to Prakash Machekar, a resident of Prabhat Colony, Aasha Nagar. A copy of the notice, which is with mid-day, stated that the floors of the structure would be demolished, and the action was carried out on Wednesday.
The notice read: “As part of the implementation of the MMRDA’s (Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority) Special Investment Region (SIR) project near the Mumbai International Airport, certain land parcels falling under the jurisdiction of Mumbai International Airport Ltd (MIAL) will be acquired.”
Two days after the Machekar family received the notice, a demolition crew arrived to tear down the third floor. “The men in our family are in the village. It’s just us women here—how are we supposed to handle a construction crew of men arriving to break down the walls?” said Pratibha Machekar.
Structures alongside the runway of T2, which are a part of the funnel zone, were demolished at Santacruz on Wednesday. Pic/Nimesh Dave
The residents of the three-storey structure believed they had complied with all construction norms. “They told us some rules were not followed, but how would we know? We trusted the contractor to handle everything as per regulations,” she added. While the MMRDA claimed to have surveyed the area on April 23, 2024, residents said they were unaware of any such visit and were shocked when the notice was delivered on May 19.
“After living in knee-deep water every monsoon for years, we finally built our own home. And just a year later, they came, broke the locks, and tore down the walls,” said Pratibha. Another building in the colony faced the same fate. Residents of that structure, requesting anonymity, said their house had been completed just nine months ago. Like the Machekar family, they too received the notice on May 19, and a demolition team arrived on May 21.
“We handed over all the paperwork to the contractor, who assured us that everything was as per the rules,” said a resident. “All demolitions are conducted as per regulations. If the structures are built on encroached MIAL land, they are bound to be demolished sooner or later,” said a senior MIAL official. The MMRDA was unavailable for immediate comment at the time of going to press.
