The division of the P-North ward is likely to take some more time as the civic body is still to procure appropriate land for the construction of a second ward office in the area. The work of division is likely to start after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) election.
The P-North ward is the most densely populated and biggest ward under the BMC covering the Malad (east) and Malad (west) areas. The eastern side of the ward has the Sanjay Gandhi National Park and it extends to the Arabian Sea on the west side. Appa Pada and Kranti Nagar areas are on the north side of the ward and the Chincholi Bandar area is at the south end of the ward. The population of the ward stands at 9.43 lakh and it covers an area of 46.67 sq mts.
Because of its length and population, the BMC officers are facing difficulties to provide civic facilities in this ward. Further, it is a major task for citizens to visit the ward office. The current P-North ward office is located at Malad (west). Citizens living in Appa Pada, Ambedkar Nagar, Kranti Nagar and Santosh Nagar have to travel 5-6 km to reach the ward office. As a result, the citizens too are demanding division of the ward.
BMC Commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal, in his last 2021-22 budget, announced division of the ward and reserved Rs 5 crore for the division work. The civic administration has decided to set up one office at Malad (east) and second at Malad (west) but no work regarding this has been done so far.
Assistant Municipal Commissioner of the P North ward, Makrand Dagadkhair said, “the joint municipal commissioner has already asked DP department to identify land for the administrative office. Approximately 11,000 sq mts land is required for the administrative office of the ward. We need extra staff and that process is also pending. Now, elections are declared and I don't think the division will happen before the election.”
