HC pulls up state govt

MUMBAI, November 9: The Bombay High Court today pulled up the state government for not following its much-touted slum rehabilitation policy in case of the 33,000-odd encroachers in the Sanjay Gandhi Borivli National Park.

The division bench comprising Chief Justice M B Shah and Justice S Radhkrishnan said the government was backtracking on its policy to provide alternate accomodation to slum dwellers whose names appear on the electoral rolls of Jan 1, 1995 outside the park. The bench disapproved of the government8217;s request to permit dereservation/denotification of that part of the national park area which is occupied by encroachers. The government expressed its inability to find alternate plots for the slumdwellers who are settled on the fringe of the park.

The court said the government will have to take up the responsibility of rehabilitating the 33,000 families. The state Chief Secretary or the Revenue Secretary has been ordered to file an affidavit in this regard. The matter will be heard onWednesday.

The court8217;s direction comes in the wake of a petition filed by Bombay Environmental Action Group BEAG.