Grand Hyatt hands over plot to BMC

Mumbai: In what can be seen as a major victory for the common people in conserving open spaces in the city, the Grand Hyatt Hotel in Kalina has finally handed over a plot of land that was marked as an amenity space to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). The move marks the end of a long struggle Kalina residents had been waging against the hotel for reclaiming the land.

The H-East officials took over the 3,000-square-metre plot from the hotel authorities on Tuesday. The civic building proposal department on January 24 had issued a notice to the hotel asking it to hand over the plot within 10 days.

The state lokayukta in December last year had issued a notice to BMC, directing it to reclaim a plot marked as an open space from the possession of Grand Hyatt Hotel. The BMC, in October, had also granted the Mumbai police sanction to prosecute Grand Hyatt’s top management for illegal constructions at its property. In 2015, the then civic chief Sitaram Kunte had asked BMC authorities to take action under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning (MRTP) Act against the hotel.

“We always wanted to hand over the plot to the BMC. Now that the entire paperwork is completed, we have handed over the plot,” said Amit Saraf, senior vice-president of the hotel.

The Kalina residents have demanded that BMC should take over the plot, alleging it has been encroached by the Grand Hyatt Hotel. It was first misused by hotel authorities for holding wedding parties and then for keeping a chiller machine, thus depriving access to common people, they alleged. They had also held various protests against the hotel in this regard.

Local Congress corporator Brian Miranda, who spearheaded people’s agitation, said, “It is a people’s victory. We have been fighting against the hotel’s attempts to encroach the land. The land now should be used for constructing a hospital for the benefit of Kalina-Santa Cruz residents.”

According to civic officials, the Grand Hyatt Hotel has to transfer the plot ownership on the BMC’s name, following which it will be eligible for alternate transfer of development rights.