Mumbai | September 11, 2026
The Mumbai suburban district administration has cleared six acres of alleged encroachment from a government plot near the Children’s Aid Society along the Sion-Panvel Highway in Mankhurd, officials said on Friday. The action involved the demolition of 57 unauthorised commercial stalls and brings the total area of government land reclaimed from encroachments across several parts of Mumbai’s suburbs to 53 acres over the past seven months.
The latest operation was carried out as part of a campaign led by Mumbai Suburban Collector Sourabh Katiyar to remove long-pending encroachments from government-owned land. Katiyar said the Mankhurd action was part of the continuing drive and that further operations would follow.
The administration had previously cleared 14 acres in Mankhurd. The latest six-acre clearance concerns another plot in the eastern suburb, where the 57 commercial structures were demolished during the operation.
The action was conducted by officials from the eastern suburbs, including the additional collector responsible for encroachment matters and the deputy collector of the Chembur division. Police protection was provided by Deputy Commissioner of Police Sameer Sheikh, according to the report.
Officials said the wider campaign has covered government plots in multiple locations. The areas listed by the district administration include a 20-acre tract in Mankhurd, 11 acres in the Kurla scrap market area, six acres near the Tata Power transmission line and the main highway, the Shakeela Ansari Compound in Deonar, two acres at Shankara Vasahat in Chembur, and a combined 14 acres in the Borivali and Andheri talukas. The administration said these plots had been taken back into government possession after the encroachments were removed.
The district administration has also acted against structures on mangrove land near the Juhu-Versova Link Road, according to officials. The report said an individual had occupied the plot after obtaining a stay order, while the Goldie Garage structure had operated in the area for several years. The suburban collector’s office had been unable to proceed while the court protection remained in force, but the structures were later demolished following continued legal and administrative follow-up by tehsildar Snehalata Swami.
The latest Mankhurd clearance highlights the administration’s ongoing effort to recover public land where encroachments have remained unresolved for years. Officials said the campaign would continue, although the report did not specify the next locations or provide details of any proposed use for the reclaimed plots.
