Seat watch: S ward | Ward with landslide-prone areas battles infra, environmental woes

It is also the key part of the ward which connects the eastern and western suburbs through Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR).

The traffic on JVLR and on the LBS Marg as well as chronic water-logging spots such as Kanjur village, especially outside the Huma theater on LBS and Naval colony where water rises two to three feet during monsoon, are among the key issues faced by residents.

“Major issues in S Ward (Bhandup/Kanjurmarg) include severe infrastructure problems like broken roads, frequent flooding from choked drains, and drinking water scarcity despite having Powai lake, Vihar lake and Bhandup water pumping station. The S ward supplies water to the entire city but citizens of this ward hardly get drinking water for three to four hours,” said local resident and BJP vice president Jai Prakash Singh.

In the ward with 14 electoral wards, eight were won by the undivided Shiv Sena in the 2017 BMC polls, indicative of the large Marathi population within. The BJP won four seats while the Congress and NCP secured one each.

This time the fight is largely between the Eknath Shinde-led Shiv Sena and Uddhav Thackeray’s Shiv Sena (UBT).

The Assembly elections were always won by Shiv Sena from the last three decades and during the 2024 polls, the seat was won by Ashok Patil of Shinde Sena.

Bhandup is largely slum pockets specially on the hill and some of the slums are slowly are being redeveloped under SRA projects causing pollution in the area.

However, according to residents, the major issue is that the roads are narrow despite high-rises coming up.
The inside roads are congested due to illegal parking on both sides and during an emergency, ambulance or fire brigade cannot enter areas like Hanuman Nagar and Tembhipada.

“Air pollution from rapid development of the ward, and significant risks from landslides in hilly areas during monsoon need to be taken care by the government,” said another resident.

Sanjay Yelve, a local resident and president of Vikhrolikar Vikas Manch, said, “Vikhroli and Kanjurmarg are facing environmental concerns including foul odour from Kanjurmarg dumping ground affecting nearby areas and garbage dumping destroying mangroves. For the last 15 years, the politicians have been making promises every election but there is no concrete solution yet.”

Vikhroli East comprises two major areas – Tagore Nagar and Kannamwar Nagar – situated on both sides on Eastern Express Highway. Considered as one of the biggest housing colonies, Kannamwar Nagar was named after Maharashtra’s second chief minister Marotrao Kannamwar in early sixties.

The buildings for economically weaker sections are being redeveloped by private builders and three and four storeyed buildings are now converted into high rise towers.

“The water connection, drainage and sewerage lines were built 50 years ago. In the buildings where 40 families were staying. 140 families have arrived after redevelopment. Citizens are facing significant civic issues, insufficient water supply due to aging pipelines, overflowing sewage lines and dust pollution and MHADA and the BMC are failing to handle these issue due to rampant and uncontrolled redevelopment”, said Yelve.

The area comes under ward number 118 and Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Chandrashekhar Jadhav’s wife is contesting from the ward. “Our main focus is to rebuild and widen sewerage line, drainage and water connection which were built in 1960s,” said Jadhav.