As civic polls inch closer, the BJP is shifting focus to issues that affect everyday life in Mumbai. After taking up issues of buildings without an Occupation Certificate (OC), the spotlight is on open spaces.
BJP Mumbai president and MLA from the Andheri West Assembly constituency, Ameet Satam, has objected to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) policy of handing over open spaces to private trusts and institutions. The city is said to have over 1100 recreation grounds and playgrounds spread across nearly 562 hectares, all under the BMC’s jurisdiction.
In a letter to the BMC, Satam has urged the civic body to scrap the policy that allows open spaces to be handed over to trusts and institutions. “In the absence of a concrete open space policy, many are applying to get open spaces for an 11-month period as per the interim policy of the civic body. But there is widespread anger among people against the policy. The BMC should consider this and discontinue this practice,” Satam stated in his letter.
A couple of years back, the BMC had invited suggestions and objections while redrafting the open space policy. Facing strong opposition from citizens, the BMC decided to scrap its draft open spaces policy released in September 2023. The draft had proposed allowing private organisations and NGOs to lease recreation grounds for up to five years. Instead, the civic body decided to continue with its older system, where open space can be adopted for maintenance only for an interim period of 11 months at a time.
The city unit president of the BJP warned that once open spaces are handed over to a trust or private party, it becomes difficult and almost impossible to get the land back. “Instead of outsourcing land, the civic body should generate revenue by allowing regulated advertising inside these spaces. The revenue generated through advertising can help BMC maintain the respective open spaces,” Satam added. In Andheri West, the MLA has developed 60 open spaces, all maintained by the BMC.
Panel to study building OC issue
Nearly a fortnight ago, the BJP had formed a panel to study and address the issues of the buildings in Mumbai that are currently without any mandatory Occupational Certificate (OC). The committee formed by the party’s Mumbai wing will look into the issues and help citizens obtain the required documents. For several thousands of Mumbai citizens, the decision assumed significance as those staying in buildings without OC were considered ‘unauthorised occupants’.
