One of the poshest addresses to live in the city today, the Sind Co-operative Housing Society’s Sadhu Vaswani Nagar was originally earmarked by the authorities as a safe haven for the refugees coming in from Pakistan. The society was registered in 1948 and the layout and the facilities that we see today were envisioned by the promoters of the Sindhi community.
“They were all professionals, government servants and businessmen. The promoters worked hard to put up an infrastructure ahead of its time,” explains Subhash Sanzgiri, the current chairman of Sind Society.
At present, the society is spread over 125 acres and there are 345 members, 30 per cent of whom are Sindhis. Since this is one of the first gated societies to come up in the city, it has managed to retain the old-world charm and peace, far away from the maddening crowds. The ground+2 bungalow system on tree-lined roads has ensured that there are no eyesores here.
“The society controls construction which is limited to ground +2 bungalows. Everyone buys land from the society to build their houses,” adds Sanzgiri.
Other significant features of the society are wide roads (main and crossroads) covering a distance of eight km. There are LED roadlights. According to a survey done five years ago, the society has a population of 5,500 trees, mostly indigenous and fruit bearing. There are no open power lines and therefore there is no fear of outage in storms or heavy monsoon.
“The society has several committees comprising the management committee members to look into various activities. For instance, the cleaning committee ensures that the premises are spic and span. It’s their responsibility to see that the garden waste and kitchen waste is converted into manure. We collect nearly 500 kg of kitchen waste everyday. We also requested the then University of Pune to conduct a survey of the society to identify water strata and caverns. Then, we set up injection wells so that the rainwater is directed to these water caverns. We have 22 such wells. And, then we are known for our Oval Park, which is thronged in the evening by members and their families. Residents of the neighbourhood also come here to walk, to sit and chat. We also have a 40 X 20 metre swimming pool, heated by solar panels. It’s an Israeli technology,” says Sanzgiri listing the points.
The society has also installed fibre to the home communication technology. He mentions that there are regular and special schools for kids in the premises. They were set up by the society through Sindhu Charitable Trust.
The Sind Society is one of the leading housing societies in the co-operative sector with an A grade for more than 50 years.
to be continued
