Pay-and-park facility on recreation ground plot at Kamala Mills razed

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has demolished an unauthorised pay-and-park facility, which was mostly used by high-end restaurants at Kamala Mills Compound in Lower Parel, civic officials said and added the parking lot was on a recreation ground plot meant for a garden.
Advocate Abha Singh, who has her office in Trade World D wing building in Kamala Mills layout, had complained to the civic body about the misuse of the plot.
“The complainant is directly affected as she owns a premises i.e. a ‘flat’ in the layout, and the recreation ground as shown in the approved plan, has to be provided as per the law so that there is a garden available for recreation and good health,” the BMC said in a statement.
The statement further said the plot measures 3,718.77square metres and has been shown as a recreation ground in the approved plan. “This plot has been illegally converted into a pay-and-park lot and further some structures have come up which are not approved in the development plan.”
The concrete flooring was also razed to expose the natural earth meant for the recreation ground. “A building has also come up on the plot which is not there on the approved plan. There were 187 trees required to be planted before being granted the occupancy certificate, but they were not planted. Instead, generators were found on the plot,” the BMC statement said.
Rajesh Chavan, designated officer, G south ward, confirmed that the recreation ground plot was being illegally utilised for parking and generators too were installed which were removed with the help of the NM Joshi Marg police on Monday.
“As per the Development Control Regulations and a Supreme Court order, a dedicated space must be kept as a garden on the ground level which must be planted with trees. Every occupant of a layout has got a legal right to claim that gardens exist the way it is prescribed. In this case, it was seen that the garden space was converted into a pay-and-park, mainly used by the high-end restaurants which operate in that area,” Singh said. “I am happy that the BMC has demolished concrete in a small part of the area and will deploy a bigger excavator to remove the entire concrete and to convert the space into a garden.”