mid-day’s May 13 report on the encroachment over the past decade

It took less than a week for the authorities to swoop in and take action against star comedian Kapil Sharma for encroaching on a protected mangrove forest in Andheri West. But, less than a kilometre away, a local school run by an NCP leader has managed to get away with the same crime for over 10 years. Locals are now questioning the motives of officials from the BMC, tehsildar’s office and the mangroves cell, all of whom have allegedly turned a blind eye to the issue.

Action against Sharma
Yesterday, the mangroves cell of the forest department visited the area where Kapil Sharma’s office is located, and the officials found that the comedian was indeed guilty of encroaching upon mangroves, and violating both coastal and environmental regulations. An assistant conservator of forest-rank official had also visited the area and confirmed to mid-day that they had found more than 50 bungalows, belonging to Sharma and other celebrities, in violation of regulations. Today, the team will hand over the final report on the matter to the environment department and the collector’s office.