India, Aug. 19 -- The controversial proposal to alter the reservation of the Neville D'Souza Football Ground at Bandra Reclamation from a playground to an exhibition centre was cleared by the BMC general body on Tuesday night despite strong opposition from corporators and football stakeholders.

The proposal seeks to amend the Development Plan (DP) 2034 by replacing the existing playground reservation and existing playground facility on an 8,450-sq-m MHADA-owned plot at Bandra Reclamation with a reservation for an Exhibition Centre (RSA 5.1). The proposal had earlier been cleared by the BMC Improvements Committee in June.

The plot in question was originally reserved as a space for a convention and trade fair centre in 1983. Fifteen years...