Nagpur, Dec 11 (IANS) In the run-up to the upcoming Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, Deputy Chief Minister and Housing and Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde on Thursday announced that the redevelopment of chawls and housing on Mumbai’s textile mill lands will now be accelerated.

In his statement in the state assembly, the Maharashtra Deputy CM said the government will fast-track this long-stalled redevelopment, which has been pending for many years. He further said the government has decided to amend regulations to encourage redevelopment of old chawls on the textile mill lands in Mumbai.

“Many of the residential buildings or chawls on the mill lands are old and dilapidated, making their redevelopment extremely necessary, which is why this decision has been taken,” he explained.

“To encourage the redevelopment of old buildings and chawls on textile mill lands, the government has approved amendments to Regulation 35(7)(a) of the Brihanmumbai Development Control and Promotion Regulations (DCPR) 2034, following the lines of other regulations. The statutory procedure for the modification under Section 37(1-KK) of the MR & TP Act has been completed,” stated Deputy CM Shinde.

He further mentioned that the notification for the approval of these amendments is being issued. This change will make the redevelopment of chawls on mill lands smoother and provide a significant impetus to the process.

The provisions for the development or redevelopment of mill lands are covered under Regulation 35 of the Brihanmumbai DCPR 2034. Sub-clause (7)(a) of this regulation outlines provisions for the redevelopment of residential/residential-cum-commercial buildings and chawls located on mill lands. While the existing provisions grant eligible residents on the mill land the right to a flat in the rehabilitation component, they do not include any provision for incentive Floor Space Index (FSI) for the developer/owner to provide this rehabilitation area, Eknath Shinde said.

He added: “Due to the lack of incentive FSI, landowners and developers are hesitant to come forward for the redevelopment of the buildings/chawls on the mill lands.”

–IANS

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