Mumbai: Maharashtra CM Stays Decision Of Giving MHADA Flats To Tata Memorial Hospital

Mumbai, 23rd June 2021: Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray yesterday stayed the decision taken in the presence of NCP president Sharad Pawar.

The Maharashtra Housing and Regional Development Authority (MHADA) had decided to transfer 100 flats to the Tata Memorial Hospital to accommodate the relatives and caregivers of the cancer patients. However, shortly after the decision was announced, Chief Minister Thackeray has now put a stay on it. The principal secretary of the housing department has also been directed to submit a report in this regard.

Meanwhile, BJP spokespersons and MLAs have criticized the decision, saying it was the culmination of a power struggle in the ‘Mahavasuli’ government. He also said that the Chief Minister has shown that he is the boss and beats Pawar.

BJP MLA Atul Bhatkhalkar tweeted, “Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad had announced in the presence of Sharad Pawar the decision to provide some houses in the nearby Sukhakarta-Vighnaharta Society for the treatment of patients at the Tata Cancer Hospital. But with a slap in the face, the chief minister reversed the decision; in the pit of humanity.”

He further said, “This decision of Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray is on the verge of power struggle in the ‘Mahavasuli’ government. The Chief Minister showed that he is the boss and beats Pawar. But in the politics of Kurghodi, he sacrificed humanity. Politics has reached a low level.”

As it is known, Tata Memorial Hospital receives patients from all over the country. They are accompanied by relatives and caregivers; but, because they do not have a place to live or a place to rent, they often have to live on the sidewalk. To avoid this inconvenience, Housing Minister Jitendra Awhad had decided to give 100 flats of 300 square feet area to Tata Memorial Hospital at a nominal rate (Rs 1 per annum) out of the flats acquired from the redevelopment of Haji Kasam Chawl at Curry Road in Parel Shivadi division.

After Shiv Sena MLA Chaudhary wrote a letter, the Chief Minister has given an order to the Principal Secretary of the Housing Department to inquire and submit a report till then the decision to hand over 100 flats has stayed.

While the decision of the housing department is being welcomed everywhere, the Chief Minister has postponed this ambitious decision of MHADA after the complaint of Shiv Sena MLA Ajay Chaudhary. Chaudhary represents the Shivadi assembly constituency. 750 Marathi families live in the buildings of Sukhakarta and Vighnaharta in his constituency. The MHADA’s decision to provide 100 flats to the relatives of cancer patients has created an atmosphere of fear among the residents, MLA Chaudhary stated in his complaint.

Chaudhary had demanded in a letter to the Chief Minister that the decision should be stayed immediately and instead the flat in the MHADA housing complex at Bhoiwada should be handed over to the Tata Hospital.