Big Push for Slum-Free Maharashtra as Redevelopment Rules Get Overhauled

The rehabilitation of more than 2.65 lakh square meters of land for structures under the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) in the upscale Bandra reclamation and Worli (Adarsh Nagar) areas of Mumbai was authorised by the Maharashtra cabinet on Tuesday.  Some of the MHADA-mandated cooperative housing societies in these locations have already received permission to be redeveloped.  For a combined redevelopment project rather than a single building project, the cabinet authorised the appointment of a Construction and Development Agency through MHADA.  Four FSI (floor space index) will be authorised for this integrated redevelopment with the government's consent.  One will be approved in the housing stock form.

An official from the housing department said that, consequently, MHADA should select the bidder for redevelopment who is prepared to supply the most significant number of housing stock to MHADA and who satisfies the financial and other requirements of the bidding process. All government decisions must be followed when the tender procedure is implemented.

The whole area of Adarsh Nagar (Worli) and Bandra Reclamation is 68,034 square meters and 1,97,466 square meters, respectively. The MHADA-appointed developer will have to provide MHADA with consent letters from 51% of the members in both areas. Rehabilitating the original landowners and occupants of these projects, offering them interim housing, paying rent for alternate locations, providing corpus monies, and building all infrastructure will fall under the purview of the Construction and Development Agency.

In order to expedite slum rehabilitation in the state and achieve a slum-free Maharashtra, the cabinet also approved revisions to the Maharashtra Slum Area (Reform, Clearance and Rehabilitation) Act-1971.  Three provisions of the statute will be changed in accordance with this ruling.  A proposal for the redevelopment of the land had to be submitted by the landowner, developer, or cooperative society within 120 days of the area being designated as a slum.  This time frame will now be shortened to sixty days.  The slum area will be turned over to another body for redevelopment if the parties involved do not submit a proposal within these sixty days.

The aforementioned land will now be made available to them on a 30-year lease within 30 days of the issuance of the letter of intent for the scheme, in an attempt to obtain loans and financial assistance from banks or financial institutions, if the slum rehabilitation program in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region is being implemented in a joint partnership with the government, semi-government corporations, authorities, or local bodies.

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Instead of transit camps, slum dwellers receive rent as part of slum restoration programs.  However, the developers fail to pay the slum dwellers their rent on time, which causes the arrears to increase.  To create a legal mechanism for obtaining the transit camp rent or other obligations from the developer, a new section 33-B will be added to the legislation.  In this case, the Revenue Act would be followed in order to collect rent arrears from the developers.