Thane, February 22 A massive human chain protest was held on Sunday against alleged illegal constructions on the Belapur Hill in Navi Mumbai, organized by the 'Save Belapur Hills Forum' and 'NatConnect Foundation'.
Participants demanded immediate government intervention to prevent a potential tragedy similar to the 2023 Irshalwadi landslide in the Raigad district, which claimed 84 lives.
Activists claimed that at least 30 unauthorized structures continue to expand across the landslide-prone slopes.
"Information obtained from CIDCO under the RTI Act reveals that these illegal constructions occupy approximately 2.3 lakh square feet of public land," an activist claimed.
The forum alleged that large-scale tree felling to facilitate these structures has severely weakened the soil stability of the hills.
"We are not against any specific community or structure. Our primary concern is the safety of the devotees visiting these hill-top sites and the over 600 families living directly in the danger zone below the slopes," said B N Kumar, director of NatConnect Foundation.
Kapil Kulkarni of the Save Belapur Hills Forum noted that while initial promises of action were made as far back as 2015, the number of structures has only grown over the last decade.