Mumbai: It took the chief minister’s orders for the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) to finally wake up from its slumber and start demolishing illegally constructed portions / extensions of bars and lodges in the twin-city. As many as seven illegally constructed establishments were bulldozed by MBMC’s anti-encroachment squad led by deputy municipal commissioner- Ravi Pawar.
The bulldozing drive by the demolition teams accompanied by a large police force started on Thursday. In the wake of the Pune Porsche incident and instances of brazen drug abuse going viral on social media platforms, chief minister-Eknath Shinde directed municipal and police commissioners to take strict action against the illegalities. “The drive will continue till the entire illegalities are weeded out.” said Pawar.
There are more than 150 bars and lodges in the twin-city. DCP (Crime) -Prakash Gaikwad personally monitored the security arrangements during the demolition drive. While some have sprung up without adequate permissions, those who managed to secure sanctions from the civic administration have carried out blatant structural changes and added illegal extensions to their establishments. The legal department has also been instructed to clear hurdles by speeding up the process of vacating stays on the virtue of which illegal constructions are protected, an official said.
