MUMBAI: A majority of the 700-odd members of the Royal Western India Turf Club (RWITC) who participated at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) voted in favour on Monday to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) proposal to acquire 120 acres of Mahalaxmi Racecourse land to build a theme park and shift the stables to another part of the property.
Of the 708 votes cast at the EGM, which was conducted online, 540 were in favour while 168 voted against. A simple majority of 51 per cent of ballots cast was required for the proposal to get cleared.
The campaign against the state government/BMC’s proposal to take away the large chunk of land from the RWITC, with many citizens opposing the “destruction” of the sprawling racecourse at Mahalaxmi ultimately (and expectedly considering the prime real estate at stake) proved futile.
The proposal envisages the following:
– To develop a theme park in the racecourse, including hotels, restaurants, amusement parks, and other entertainment places, restricting citizens’ access to the racecourse.
– To construct multi-storied residential and commercial buildings and complexes by following the slum rehabilitation route, allowing developers to build inside the racecourse.
– To give a donation of nearly Rs. 100 Crores to RWITC to build an exclusive modern clubhouse and stables for itself, using public funds to finance a private club.
– Building an exclusive modern clubhouse means that a large part of the racecourse will become a full-fledged club only for the members of RWITC, resulting in further deprivation of open space to the public.
– To change the present reservation of the racecourse as a Recreation Ground (RG) to achieve the above.
– To divide the racecourse between the State Government/MCGM and RWITC, controlling access to the racecourse.
– Although the plan designates certain areas as a public garden/theme park, hotels, restaurants, towers, residential, and commercial complexes will be built there.
– There will be large-scale concretisation of the ground, presently permeable, consisting of mud or grass, resulting in the deprivation of open space and green lung for Mumbaikars.
The Mahalaxmi Racecourse, which is situated across the Arabian Sea, was built over a vast expanse of marshland spread over 211 acres when the then Bombay Turf Club shifted its operation from Byculla Racecourse. The construction of the new racecourse was possible due to the generosity of industrialist Sir Cusrow N Wadia, who provided a Rs 5 lakh loan to the turf club.
