The Mumbai suburban collectorate has reclaimed another six acres of government land near the Children’s Aid Society along the Sion-Panvel Highway in Mankhurd, officials said on September 11. The action included the demolition of 57 illegal commercial units on the plot and forms part of an ongoing drive to remove long-pending encroachments from government land across Mumbai’s suburban district.
The latest operation brings the total government land reclaimed from encroachments in the Mankhurd area to 20 acres, according to the collectorate. In all, 53 acres of government land have been cleared and taken into government possession during the past seven months, suburban collector Sourabh Katiyar said.
The action was carried out by officials from the additional collectorate for the eastern suburbs and the Chembur sub-divisional office. Police protection was provided by Deputy Commissioner of Police Sameer Sheikh, allowing the enforcement teams to demolish the commercial structures and secure the site, according to the report.
The six-acre Mankhurd plot is among several government land parcels targeted under the district administration’s encroachment-removal campaign. The reclaimed sites include 11 acres in the Kurla scrap area, six acres along the Tata Power transmission line and the main highway, land at the Shakeela Ansari Compound in Deonar, and two acres at Shankara Vasahati in Chembur.
The campaign has also covered government land in Borivali and Andheri talukas, where a combined 14 acres has reportedly been cleared. Katiyar said the reclaimed plots had been taken into government possession. The administration has indicated that action against other long-standing encroachments will continue.
Separately, the suburban collectorate has removed structures that had encroached on mangrove land near the Juhu-Versova Link Road. The site had been occupied after an individual obtained a stay order, according to the report. A structure known locally as Goldy Garage had operated there for several years, but the administration had previously been unable to act because of the court protection.
The structures were eventually demolished after follow-up by tehsildar Snehalata Swami, the report said. The action reflects the administrative process involved in enforcing possession of public land where encroachments are supported by ongoing legal proceedings.
Katiyar said the encroachment-removal drive would continue. The district administration’s next steps will involve further action against identified encroachments on government land and continued efforts to retain possession of the cleared plots.
