Plea against slums on railway land

MUMBAI, Sept 30: Drusha Mehta has filed a petition in the Bombay High Court with an NGO, Mumbai Suburban Railway Passengers’ Association, as intervenor asking railway authorities to check the establishment of hutments along railway tracks. While Mehta filed the petition on September 14, MSRA filed its supporting petition in High Court on Wednesday. It has been filed on the provisions of the Railway Act, 1988, which says an open space of 100 feet (30 metres) should be allotted on either sides of railway land, said Deepak Gandhi, MSRA president. Notices have also been issued to the General Managers of Railways (Western and Central), BMC and the Railway Police Force. The petition says the haphazard growth of slums on either side of the railway tracks violate safety norms and endanger the safety of rail commuters.