Actor Rishi Kapoor taking part in the protest by Pali Hill residents against the proposal to open up the locality's footpaths to hawkers.
Residents of Pali Hill, one of Mumbai's most affluent neighbourhoods, held a silent protest on Sunday, against a proposal by the municipal body to allow hawkers to set up shop on footpaths in the area. The protests join the chorus against the Mumbai Development Plan 2034, which is drawing flak on a number of fronts.
"It makes no sense for hawkers to be allowed in Pali Hill. This will only inconvenience us. There is enough traffic already, cars are parked on both sides of the road - where is the space for hawkers? It's not a commercial zone, it's a residential zone", said actor Rishi Kapoor who participated in a silent protest with residents on Sunday.
Other notable residents of the upmarket locality include actors Dilip Kumar, Prem Chopra and Emraan Hashmi. Some of them took part in the silent protest on Sunday, against the proposal, which aims to allow 2000 hawkers set up shop on 50 footpaths. Residents claim some of these footpaths do not even exist.
Residents say an agreement was signed between the association and the municipal body 16 years ago. "Through this agreement, all hawkers were removed and Pali Hill was classified as a pure residential zone. Even if digging has to be undertaken, it has to be done with the permission of the association. How can this decision about hawkers be taken without our consultation?" asked Rati Banajee, a resident of the area.
They also objected to parts of the draft Mumbai Development Plan 2034, which showed roads cutting through bungalows and gardens in Pali Hill. "There has been zero application of mind. No one has visited the site. Decisions have been taken based on satellite images," Madhu Poplai, secretary of the Pali Hill Residents Association, told NDTV.
The draft of the Mumbai Development Plan is being reviewed by a committee set up by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis. BJP legislator Ashish Shelar said the Chief Minister had assured him that hawkers would not allowed in areas that had been classified as purely residential.