MUMBAI, Sept. 25 -- Time was when Mumbaikars chose to live in verdant Powai - a central suburb of Mumbai - for its planned wide pavements, tree-lined avenues and open spaces. Developed in the early 1990s, it was envisioned as a self-contained township where children could safely walk to school and residents could enjoy the breeze wafting across the hills surrounding the neighbourhood. Today, as that character of the suburb is on the cusp of change, with a proposed 13.40-meter Development Plan Road, a 30,000-seat Global Capacity Centre (GCC), redevelopment and expansion of commercial properties, and a proposed data centre, Powaikars have formed many groups as a collective to push back against the development. Sunita Gohrani, a nutritionist and naturopath, and an old-time resident of Powai, is spearheading a campaign against the proposed DP Road which will cut through the Pramod Mahajan Urban Forest. More than 120 trees from the roughly 7.65-acre man-made forest will be felled for the purpose, earlier reported by HT. 3000-odd residents have backed the campaign. "We had signed up for a Powai that was guarded by hills, clean lakes and forests. All that is being taken away in the garb of development," said Gohrani. Gohrani and other residents fear the character of Hiranandani Gardens - the signature enclave of the suburb - with more than 70 buildings, over 50 acres of open green spaces, around one lakh trees planted over the years and 22 recorded rare tree species may be compromised, while also putting additional pressure on roads, parking, water and other infrastructure. Jayman Khona, who is a part of the campaign said "the proposed GCC has emerged as a particular flashpoint". Residents have described the project as a "public and ecological disaster in the making" and questioned "the logic of embarking on redevelopment on such a large scale in an already densely populated neighbourhood". "Can Powai take this additional pressure? The new development plans are an imposition on us, which have been launched in an undemocratic way," said Milan Bhatt, secretary of the Powai ALM, pointing to impending collapse of traffic infrastructure as a result of the redevelopment projects, which would bring a large number people into this township. The ALM, along with key members of 15 housing societies, wrote a letter to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis in June, expressing their opposition to the GCC, requesting an in-person meeting with the chief minister. A follow-up letter to the chief minister's office (CMO) was sent last month - both did not elicit any response. The proposed data centre has stoked concerns about water scarcity and its cumulative impact. "The cumulative impact of such projects needs to be assessed, which has not been done at all," said a resident who did not wish to be named. When Shobha Philip, secretary of Lake Castle building abutting the forest, moved to Hiranandani Gardens in 1993, her four-year-old daughter walked to school. She remembers bullfights on the surrounding hills. When her ageing parents moved in, proximity to the hospital was a triumph. "Now, that journey takes half an hour," Philip said. She said Powai's traffic has worsened with commercial development. "More offices and commercial developments translate to more people entering and leaving the township without a corresponding increase in road capacity," she said. "This place was once covered with lush green trees; it did not feel like Mumbai at all." Long-time Powai resident Debi Goenka remembers Powai's microclimate. When he moved there in 1996, residents did not require air-conditioning or fans. "Today, noise from the construction site next to me continues throughout the day. I have to keep the windows shut and the fans and AC on constantly," said Goenka, referring to the redevelopment of CitiPark, a five-storey commercial structure being replaced by an 18-storey structure. Pamela Cheema, Powai ALM chairperson, moved there to escape Mumbai's traffic. "But the ecosystem of that time is gone now," she said. Residents also flagged growing pedestrian space and parking. "New developments are being planned without adequately accounting for the additional two-wheelers that will drive through these streets. While some newer commercial buildings have parking spaces, the same for two-wheelers remains unclear," said Ratan Sharda of Powai Action Forum, questioning whether development suits the neighbourhood. Residents said they are not opposed to development but believe it should "not come at the cost of the greenery, open spaces and liveability that drove people here". When HT sent a text message to Fadnavis regarding Powaikars' opposition to rampant development, he texted back saying: "My office is in touch with Mr Ratan Sharda. We will address their concerns."...