As you all know that we have been fighting against the dumping ground at Uttan - Dhavagi, the authorities instead of shifting have now issued externment notice on the leaders / activists of the agitation. Bombay Catholic Sabha has organised a press conference on this issue. Kindly be present.
Shashi Sonawane
National Convenor - Yuva Bharat
The BCS has convened this press conference.
Among those who will address the press conference are:
Justice B.G. Kolse-Patil - President- Lokshashan Andolan. Shashi Sonawane - National Convernor- Yuva Bharat [One of the activists on whom the notice has been served. Adv. Godfrey Pimenta - President - Sahar Citizens Forum
James Colaso - Secy, Civic & Political Cell Bhayander Deanery.[ Activist on whom notice has been served]
The villages of the Dharavi Bet i.e. island (within Mira-Bhayander Municipal limits) along the west coast is adjacent to Mumbai. The Koli (fisherfolks), Agri, Kunbi, Bhandari communities are the original inhabitants of Mumbai. This Dharavi Bet is the last bastion of these original Mumbaikars and is pristine and unpolluted . Despite being adjacent to Metropolis, the villagers have preserved their original language and their East Indian Christian Culture for the past 700 years.
The administration with the sole motive of harassing the people have brought up the solid waste management project on the hill top that too in a NO Development Zone at Uttan-Dhavagi. This private project with a capacity of 450 tons of Garbage has come up on the Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis for 30 years. Considering the location of this dumping ground, locals have been protesting against it right from the beginning. No where in the world Dumping ground has come up on the top of the hill thereby adversely affecting the environment of the entire area. Since the commencement of the project the villagers have been suffering various ailments like Bronchitis, Tuberculosis, Malaria, Dengue, flu, viral fever and other diseases. People are forced to live with the foul smell that is coming out of this project. Moreover, in the two years period, the wells of the surrounding area have contaminated and the agricultural land too is contaminated due to pollution, which has affected livelihood of the farmers.
Hence the villagers had no other alternative but to agitate against the dumping ground which has become the symbol of the anti-people approach of the authorities and ruling elite.
The agitation has been peaceful and non-violent. Despite this fact, on 24th September 2009, the Police especially male personnel brutally lathicharged on the villagers mostly women agitators and fired expired teargas shells on the agitators. A complaint has been filed against police authorites with NHRC and enquiry is going on.
Despite their being no provocation and the talks going on, the District Magistrate of Thane district, on 20th January, 2010, arbitrarily issued Show Cause ( Tadipar ) Notice, communicated through the media on the leaders of the agitations - namely Justice B.G. Kolse-Patil (retd.) President Lokshasan Andolan, Com. Vilas Sonawane, Coordinator - All India anti-SEZ, anti-land grabbing & anti-displacement coordination committee, Shashi Sonawane - National Convenor, Yuva Bharat, Nicholas Almeida [ Ex-Corporator]. This notices bars these leaders from entering not only Mira-Bhayander but the entire Thane Rural District. Number of criminal cases have been filed against them under various sections like143, 145, 147, 148, 149, 341, 333, 353, 336 - 338 of IPC etc.
President
Yuva Bharat
Stri-Dasya, Jati-Varga Vyavastha Anta Ke Liye Samarpit Naujawanon ka Akhil Bhartiya Sanghatan
visit us at : http://www.yuvabharat.wordpress.com/
email. bharat.yuva@gmail.com
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