The Lokmanya Nagar–Shastrinagar cluster scheme in Thane is set to enter a new phase of direct public engagement, with one Shiv Sena group planning a door-to-door campaign to explain the proposal and record residents’ views, suggestions and objections. The move follows a public dispute between two party groups over the redevelopment scheme, a proposed development-plan road and an internal metro corridor linked to the area.
According to a report by Loksatta – Thane, local municipal corporator and house leader Hanmant Jagdale is supporting the cluster scheme and has planned a one-day training camp for 500 party workers from 35 housing societies in the area. The workers will be briefed on the scheme before visiting residents’ homes over the following days.
The campaign is intended to address confusion among residents and gather their responses directly. The report said that public meetings, social media posts and statements by the two groups have presented different positions on the proposal, leaving residents uncertain about its likely impact.
The cluster scheme is expected to be implemented in the Lokmanya Nagar–Shastrinagar area. As part of the plan, a road included in the development plan is to be developed, and an internal metro corridor has been proposed along the same route. The available report does not specify the proposed road width, the metro alignment, the project’s implementation schedule or the terms of rehabilitation for affected residents.
Opposition to the proposal has been expressed through the Lokmanya Nagar Bachav All-Party Action Committee. A meeting organised by the committee was attended by Maharashtra Transport Minister Pratap Sarnaik, who said that residents were not opposed to development but would not accept displacement and destruction, according to the report.
Sarnaik also alleged that some people were interested in the cluster scheme rather than merely in widening the road. The report did not provide a response from Jagdale to that specific allegation, although it said he later clarified his position at a public determination meeting.
The dispute has increasingly moved from public meetings into political and digital campaigning. One group has been raising questions about the plan, while the other has been presenting it as being in the public interest. The disagreement has also contributed to fears among residents that the project could leave them homeless, a concern that Jagdale’s outreach is intended to address.
The planned campaign marks a shift from broad political statements to direct engagement with individual housing societies and households. It may also provide a more detailed record of resident concerns before any further decisions on the redevelopment, road or metro proposal. However, the report does not establish whether the consultation will form part of a formal statutory process or whether residents’ responses will be incorporated into an approved project plan.
The next immediate step is the one-day training programme for the 500 workers, followed by their proposed visits to homes across the 35 housing societies. The political debate over the cluster scheme is therefore set to continue through direct resident consultations in the coming days.
