ULHASNAGAR NEWS

Ulhasnagar civic officials want salary as per sixth pay panel


More than 3,000 civic employees staged a dharna in front of the office of the municipal corporation on Monday. Alleging official apathy, the employees of the Ulhasnagar Municipal Corporation were protesting against the non-payment of salaries in accordance with the recommendations of the Sixth Pay Commission.

“The civic authorities have only been making false promises. Whenever we met officials to make them aware of our plight, we were told that the civic body was looking into our demands and will find an amicable solution soon. However, two years have passed but nothing concrete has happened so far,” said Charansingh Tak, president, Akhil Bhartiya Safai Mazdoor Congress.

Tak added that official apathy had escalated this matter and infuriated employees now seek immediate action from municipal corporation to resolve this simmering crisis.

He warned that if the administration failed to offer any solution soon, 3,000 civic employees will go an indefinite strike.

Highlighting the grievances of civic employees, he said the authorities had failed to implement the recommendations of the Lad and Page committee report. There has been no progress in the recruitment of 300 employees, which has been pending for almost a year now. Due to the indifference of the civic officials, more than 200 workers have been forced to work on daily wages for almost 10 to 15 years. Most of them are due to retire soon, but the civic body still doesn’t have any concrete plans to offer them some retirement benefits.

When HT approached municipal commissioner Ashok Rankhamb, he said, “We had formed a committee to look into the matter and we are also seeking guidance from legal and account sections to implement the recommendations of the committee at the earliest. We have also approached the state government to expedite the matter.”

Expressing concern about employees’ welfare, he said, “They are our employees and we will be happy to address their grievances. We are looking into their demands and will see to it that this issue is resolved.”

REAL ESTATE IN BUKAD

“One can find plenty of 1BHK homes costing Rs 10-15 lakh here, which is perfect for government employees,” says Mohan Tharwani, from Tharwani infrastructure. Tharwani’s ongoing projects include Rosalie, Rosalie LX at Kalyan and Ritu World- Wind of Change at Barrage Road, Badlapur (West). “Ritu World is the first of its kind luxury project in Badlapur with all modern amenities at affordable prices,” informs Mohan Tharwani.  

Ambernath is faring well with its new projects like Wadhwa constructions. “Ambernath is a blend of old-world charm, culture and modern times. People keep getting attracted to its ambience,” says Prakash Wadhwa, from Wadha group. He adds, “We have slashed 100 rupees from the booking price for Gudi Padwa to boost sales in Ambernath,” adds Wadhwa.

In Dombivli, premium lifestyle projects such as Lodha’s Casa Bella and Regency Estate have altered the perception of the city. “These flats offer high-end amenities at reasonable prices, moreover Dombivli is really well connected, has good education options, a mall nearby,” says Kishore Pishori, a CA and a resident of Regency Estates.

Interestingly, Government policy has a role to play in the emergence of these areas as realty hotspots. Avers Bhavin from Raj Group, “The home loans are more attractive. Most of these projects are backed by banks; these factors are responsible for a huge spurt in realty demand.”

There are positive signs of development in the far flung suburbs too. Neptune builders and Nirmal Lifestyle are coming up with projects in Ambivli and Shahad, which are all set to revolutionise the face of these towns. “The main advantages of these suburbs are low pollution level and affordable rates,” says Raja Rochlani of Madhav constructions.

"Badlapur has become a haven for professionals from the public sector. One can find plenty of 1BHK homes costing Rs 10-15 lakh here, which is perfect for government employees”

ULHASNAGAR

Ulhasnagar was initially built as a transit military camp during the II world war by the British.
 After the independence of India, came the partition wherein, the Sind state was transferred to Pakistan. The Sindhi community reluctantly left their homes, property and money and traveled to Mumbai, with a mistaken hope of eventually returning to their homes for good.
The Indian Government decided to allot these camps to these refugees; they were provided food grains, milk and cooking fuel.
Eventually the community realized that they could not return to their native land and began reinventing themselves. The skilled Sindhis got immediate employment in neighbouring ambarnath and the remaining educated ones were employed in the business offices of Mumbai.
The Sindhis essentially are a hardworking and creative community. During the early days of licensing and socialism people yearned for imported goods and the imitation of imported goods became a large industry and made Ulhasnagar notorious.
Manufacturers learnt the intricacy of manufacturing and today they are OEM’s to many garments, electronic and electrical brands worldwide. Today it is believed that you can find anything in Ulhasnagar
Nobody had inherited any property here. The military barracks were divided into 5 zones which later came to be known as Camp no. 1,2,3..etc. Most of the constructions were illegal. Even today majority do not register their property instead it is only a deal executed on a stamp paper.
Trade ad Commerce attracted a lot of migrants into Ulhasnagar today the population is around 8 lacs and among these 60% are Sindhis.
Ulhasnagar is a fascinating place to visit for shopping; the area is crowded during every festival. The street food is the best, I guess the Vada Pav was invented here, the Sindhi pappads are the ultimate.
Today it seems like the town is only occupied by gangsters. There is murder, kidnapping, and suicides all for the sake of lust or power. The national newspapers only carry such news about this wonderful town.
It is now upon you to tell us why you love or hate Ulhasnagar?

INTRODUCTION

                                                          

BUKAD literally means Badlapur, Ulhasnagar, Kalyan, Ambernath and Dombivili. Our historical towns were once prosperous and cosmopolitan. We were part of the Maurya and Gupta empires, the Yadavas, the Marathas, the Moghuls and the Portuguese.

We had direct trade through sea with Persia and Mesopotamia i.e. Iran and Iraq even Bombay port was established. We’ve had Christian missionaries dropping in on their way to China, The Parsi’s too had settled here.

The famous temples like the Shiv Mandir, Kodeshwar temple, Vithal temple are still intact because of the efforts of the common man.

Today BUKAD is considered a part of the Greater Mumbai metropolitan agglomeration, along with Navi Mumbai, Thane and Bhiwandi.

Unfortunately today we are at the mercy of bukkads, the corrupt have ruined us, and we simply accept this as a part of our normal lives.

Today with Anna Hazare showing the way, our Politicians cannot carry on like an Ostrich with its head buried in the sand. I guess we have a great M.P. and MLA’s unfortunately it is the ones below them that are responsible for the mess we are living in.

We would take this blog with all your comments to our elected guardians and revert to you. Please do not use abusive language but definitely this is a blog to vent your ire on the misfortunes bestowed upon us by the corrupt.

Now look forward to your posts.