Mumbai News: Residents Of British-Era Girgaon Building Face Uncertain Future After MHADA Labels It 'Extremely Dangerous'

Mumbai: Just a few metres away from the bustling Girgaon Chowpatty, an old cemented British-era building of Anuben Niwas has draped itself in haunting silence as the 80 families residing in the chawl-style building fear losing their homes. An eviction notice pasted on the building’s entrance has taken the residents aback, who were otherwise hopefully chipping in money for the building’s repairs.

On Wednesday, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) listed 96 buildings in South and Central Mumbai as ‘extremely dangerous’. These buildings collectively house more than 3,000 people. While the notices were issued to 184 residential tenants, only three have shifted to transit camps, leaving 176 families which are still sticking to their dangerous residence.

Residents of Anuben Niwas in Girgaon face eviction after MHADA labels the British-era building 'extremely dangerous'

One of these buildings is the Arvind Niwas, now called Anuben Niwas, located at the very end of Morvi Lane on the Chowpatty Seaface Rd. The old ground-plus-three storeyed building, which is right adjacent to the railway tracks of the Western line, shakes every time a train passes on it. The two-winged building has ten single-room flats on each floor and the living condition worsens as one climbs the ladder upwards.

Although the terrace has been plastered with water-proofing solutions, the leakage seeps into the ceilings of the top floor, which has to be supported with poles to prevent them from coming down. Some of the rooms suffer massive leakage and have to be paid extra attention during monsoon, like the Awale family does, living here for the last 18 years.

Residents of Anuben Niwas in Girgaon face eviction after MHADA labels the British-era building 'extremely dangerous'

During The Free Press Journal’s visit, Manthan Avale (19), said, “The building’s repairs are due for the last five years after the repairs were halted midway due to the Covid-19 pandemic. We have been trying very hard to get the repair work completed but there have been issues between the landlord and the tenants, which has also resulted in the building not going into redevelopment.”

The residents said that MHADA was supposed to repair the building, but the plan did not succeed as many residents were not ready to pay for it. Many tenants, who are also a co-owner of the property due to pagdi system arrangement, had paid Rs1 lakh for the repair work before the pandemic. They allege that they are being asked to pay the same amount again to complete the work.

Residents of Anuben Niwas in Girgaon face eviction after MHADA labels the British-era building 'extremely dangerous'

Bharat Shah (80) who has been living with his 78-year-old wife on the ground floor of the building for the last 50 years, thinks that the building will not be demolished. “Being a senior citizen couple, we somehow managed to pay the money thinking that the problem would be sorted for the remaining time of our lives. Now they are again asking for the same amount which is not possible for us,” he said.

While MHADA pasted the eviction notices on the ground and top floor of the building, many residents were found to be unaware about it as they were teared down by a few residents. While the residents expressed disappointment that the authorities or the landlord did not inform them personally, they also allege that they face this problem due to their neighbours who are not willing to pay for the repair.

Residents of Anuben Niwas in Girgaon face eviction after MHADA labels the British-era building 'extremely dangerous'

“This is creating a lot of confusion as earlier there were talks about repairs and now they are threatening to demolish this. We have not been informed by anybody about what has to be done now. We even paid our part of expenses for the repair work but it couldn’t start as the residents of the other wing are not paying,” said Sarika Rathod, a resident of the D-Wing.

However, the residents of C-Wing claim that many of them have accepted to pay after the eviction notice has been served. “Once my son was luckily saved from a falling slab in the common toilets after which I pressed for repairs. Since I was a new resident, not many paid heed to my request and some even entered into a scuffle with me. Now many of them have shown willingness to pay,” said Minaxi Sukale, a resident of the C-wing.

These residents stare into an uncertain future as they remain oblivious about what lies ahead for them. While their opinions about paying for repair works differ, their wish of not being evicted from the building remains common.

Sushila Shah (83), who lives with her daughter-in-law and grand-daughter, said, “This house is the only asset I am left with following my son’s death. Maybe some people would not be paying because of being short of money. They can take extra money from us but I request them to not push us out from here.”