Sahar residents to protest against proposed evacuation

Mumbai, Dec 14 (UNI) Facing threat of evacuation in view of the proposed Mumbai Airport expansion plan, some 25,000 residents plan to hold a rally to oppose the move at Sahar Village here tomorrow, Sahar Citizens Forum said today.

Alleging that the Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) was trying to acquire 436 plots in Sahar Village, which includes a 409-year-old Church and a graveyard, Forum Chairman Godfrey W Pimenta said that the residents also plans to take out a candle-lit procession to register its protest against the ''anti poor policies of the State and the Central Government''.

The Forum is demanding that all the 85,000 slum dwellers should be resettled within the boundaries of the airport land and the project-affected people should be provided a proper compensation.

Other demands of the Forum include implementation of the National Rehabilitation and Resettlement Policy (2007), which was passed by the Parliament in November this year, and withdrawal of notices given to all religious places.

UNI