Maharashtra: After a long legal battle, numerous complaints from residents, and protests, wholesale fish traders on Senapati Bapat Road have finally been shifted to the Mahatma Jyotiba Phule Market (formerly Crawford Market). 37 fish traders were relocated following a January 9 order from the Bombay High Court, which directed the temporary shifting of the Dadar fish market to the basement of Crawford Market Block 3.
BMC Issues Shifting Notice
The BMC’s market department issued a notice to the fish traders on January 16, after which the traders were shifted. The Dadar fish market traders will be permanently shifted to Block 1 of the redeveloped Crawford Market building, which is expected to be ready for occupancy within two years.
Traffic Congestion Sparks Protests
Since the closure of the Elphinstone flyover, residents of Dadar’s Senapati Bapat Road had been angered by the fish traders occupying the busy road, exacerbating already poor traffic conditions. The BMC had initially planned to temporarily shift the market to a site identified in Wadala and later to Airoli. However, the fish traders opposed this and approached the court, insisting on being shifted to the pre-designated Crawford Market. The BMC was reluctant to shift them to Crawford Market immediately, as the redeveloped building had not yet received its Occupation Certificate (OC).
Trader Comments on Court Order
A fish trader said, “We have happily shifted to Crawford Market. The BMC tried very hard to shift us to Airoli, but we refused and insisted on being shifted to Crawford Market. The High Court stood by us. It has ordered a temporary shift to the basement of Block 3 and a permanent shift to Block 1 after the OC is obtained.”
