Jitendra Awhad Demands Probe Into Rs 2800 Crore TDR Deal For Yeoor Forest Land

Nationalist Congress Party (Sharadchandra Pawar) MLA Jitendra Awhad on Tuesday demanded a high-level inquiry into a proposed Rs 2,800-crore Transferable Development Rights (TDR) deal involving 193 acres of land in Chitalsar-Manpada, located at the foothills of Yeoor in Thane.

Awhad directed his demand for an investigation to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Forest Minister Ganesh Naik. The opposition MLA also warned of initiating legal action to block the transaction.

The controversy centers on a massive 193-acre tract of land that has triggered a political storm in the city. Awhad alleged that the disputed land, which had been treated as forest land and kept under the control of the forest department for decades, was improperly handed back to its private owner.

According to Awhad, this transfer was made possible through manipulated transactions and administrative inaction. He questioned why the forest department remained silent during the process despite having maintained control over the property for several decades.

Awhad raised critical questions regarding the role of local authorities in the deal, asking how land belonging to the forest department could be transferred to a private owner and subsequently reserved by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC).

The demand for an inquiry seeks to expose potential irregularities in the high-value development rights deal and safeguard the conservation status of the Yeoor forest land.