In the view of fierce opposition from the all-party Dharavi Rescue Movement (DRM), Dharavi Redevelopment Project Pvt Ltd (DRPPL) has called off its low-key ceremony of bhoomipujan (groundbreaking ceremony).
A DRPPL spokesperson said, "Our contractor is doing puja for his equipment. There is no bhoomipujan."
On Wednesday, September 11, DRM held a symbolic hunger strike near Matunga Labour Camp.
After the Union cabinet decided to transfer 256 acres of salt pans in Mulund, Bhandup, and Kanjurmarg to the state, which had asked for the land for DRP, the DRPPL board decided last week to have a bhoomipujan during Ganesh festivities. The ceremony was to be held in Matunga, where phase 1 of rehab buildings is to be built. But, those opposed to the project warned they would disrupt the ceremony.
"There is no govt decision yet guaranteeing a house in exchange for a house and a shop for a shop in Dharavi. This is a conspiracy to declare most Dharavi residents ineligible, force them out of Dharavi and create another Dharavi in its place," activist Raju Korde was quoted by TOI.
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