The Bombay High Court has directed authorities to complete all pending procedures immediately and set a final deadline of six weeks to ensure legal rehabilitation of families displaced from Sheva Koliwada in Uran taluka.
Court Criticizes 40-Year Delay
The High Court was critical of the central government and the Jawaharlal Nehru Port Authority (JNPA) for the four-decade delay in the rehabilitation process. During hearings held on April 22 and April 29, a division bench of Justices Manish Pitale and Shriram Shirsat stated that the delay was not merely administrative, but a serious human rights concern.
The HC expressed dissatisfaction over an affidavit filed by the Union Ministry of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, which focused on procedural consultations between ministries without providing a concrete timeline for completing the rehabilitation.
"We are not satisfied with the contents of the said affidavit, which show typical bureaucratic intransigence and the old habit of running paper horses from one department to another, with no substantive progress in the matter," the HC order said.
Lip Service Alleged
The regard claimed by the officers appears to be only "lip service," the HC said, adding that "petitioners are waiting for their rehabilitation for the past 40 years, as they had handed over possession of their lands way back in the year 1986." On April 29, the HC directed that if the authority does not take concrete steps "within six weeks from today, we will consider allowing the interim application so that the affected persons will finally have possession of rehabilitation plots, for which they have been waiting for decades."
256 Families Affected
The petition relates to 256 project-affected families whose lands were acquired in 1983 for port-related development. According to the petition, the families handed over possession of village lands in 1986 and have since been living in transit camps at Hanuman Koliwada. The petition states that 88 farmer families and 168 non-farmer families have remained in temporary accommodation for decades while waiting for permanent plots.
The court observed that repeated extensions were granted earlier, but progress remained limited to paperwork. It warned that without a fixed timeframe, the case could drag on for years and even the current generation of petitioners might not see rehabilitation completed.
Water Supply Concerns
The bench questioned conditions in the 91-gunta transit camps, particularly the scarcity of drinking water. It noted that water was reportedly supplied for only one hour once every 15 days. The court directed JNPA to ensure immediate and adequate water supply and to provide basic facilities in the camp without delay.
Final Warning
At the April 29 hearing, the court made clear that if rehabilitation is not completed within six weeks, it will pass final orders directing the government to allot legal plots to the 180 families already granted permission. On the same day, a meeting of affected families was held at the ministry in the presence of Joint Secretary Sanjay Ingle from the Revenue and Forest Department. Officials gave an assurance to begin transferring nearly 10.2 hectares of land from the central government to the state. Ingle also instructed JNPA to maintain all basic facilities in the transit camp until rehabilitation is completed, stating that responsibility for the camp remains with the authority.
Advocates Rashid Khan and Siddharth Ingle represented the families. JNPA told the court the process stalled due to lack of funds and cited exchanges with the finance ministry between November 2025 and January 2026 over clarifications and revised proposals.
