Mumbai: Shiv Sena objects to providing of Aarey colony land for 'Metro Car Shed'

Shiv Sena has raised their objections regarding providing land in Aarey colony for 'Metro Car Shed', while approving the other proposed uses in the revised draft DP 2014 - 2034 prepared by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). 

The report of the six member planning committee appointed for hearing suggestions/objections over the draft DP was handed over to Snehal Ambekar, Mayor of Mumbai on Monday. 

The Mayor will hand over the report to the Municipal Commissioner, who will bring the revised draft DP along with this report on the floor of the new civic general body by 20 March, this month. Shiv Sena is likely to create uproar over the proposed Metro Car Shed in Aarey.

Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray and Yuva Sena president Aditya Thackeray have been fighting tooth and nail against the State government's decision of reserving the plot of No Development Zone in Aarey for the Metro Car shed and it's additional purpose uses, claiming that it will create imbalance in the the eco-sensitive area.

The Planning Committee, however while hearing the suugestions and objections, has retained the users of Metro Car Shed, Zoo, existing built-up areas within the Aarey and rehabilitation of Adivasis displaced from Sanjay Gandhi National Park. 

The Metro Car shed was retained considering that the approval for the location is already granted by the State Government. 

Alternate site is deleted and is included in Green Zone. 

Trushna Vishwasrao, Leader of the House and Yashodhar Phanse, chairman of the civic standing committee has raised their objection on record during the hearing. Zone of Aarey changed from NDZ to Green Zone where additional uses will be permitted only after approval from the State Government with concurrence from MoEFCC.

Other prime concerns as stressed in the revised draft Development Plan 2014 - 2034 is the affordable housing and rental housing and creating open spaces.

BMC has attempted to juggle to figures and bring it on record that new DP will offer the city open space up to 3.77 acres as against the present 0.03 acres per 1000 people. 

But, this is mere hogwash as civic body is planning to exploit 2,100ha of the existing eco-sensitive, No Development Zone and 210ha of Salt Pan Land for the development. Out of which, only 787ha of this will be used to create affordable housing for 1 million people. Civic body has proposed that Mumbai Port Trust should part with at least 55ha of land for the affordable housing scheme.

In the new draft Development Plan 2014-34, the BMC has proposed to create a stock of affordable housing by 2034 and the civic body plans to dole out an FSI of 4 for the scheme. 

Though, a good Sixty-two per cent of the city's population is eligible for free housing, this population will not be counted under the scheme as they will be eligible for Slum Rehabilitation Scheme. 

The housing stocks will cater to those sections of the middle class that cannot afford high-end homes. BMC is also planning for the rental housing scheme for those who have come to the city for jobs and have small tenure. The successful online lottery syst

Salient Features of the report:

1) Powers given to Commissioner to suitably modify land use of designations which are not required.

2) Affordable Housing is the cornerstone of this DP. RDDP 2034 provided for 707.13 Ha of land for affordable housing in the form of reservations. In view of additional reservation proposed by Planning Committee the total area of Affordable Housing will now become 787.28 Ha.(7872800 Sq.mtrs or 84742113.9 Square feet).

3) Mumbai Port Turst suggested DP planning committee, not to specify the reservations and designations in the DP so that the authority will have flexibility of changing the use of land as per the futre requirement, But Planning committee has not mentioned such reservations in the Public Land Use map, the Committee ensured that the amenities are indicated in the DCPR, so that it shall be obligatory on MbPT to make available these amenities while proposing the development of MbPT areas. Accordingly, the amenities are enlisted in the DCPRs.

4) Yielding to a large number of request during hearing, Erstwhile NDZ lands, those which do not fall in NA, with unauthorized protected occupants have been termed as Special Development
Zone I (SDZ I) land where amended provision of 33(10) has been made applicable.

5) Other NDZ lands, which are largely vacant and not falling in NA/SDZ-I have been termed as SDZ II and a new provision of DCPR 33(8) is being made applicable to such lands essentially for creating large stock of Affordable Housing.

6) In order to avoid open defecation/urination and as suggested by various NGO’s, in addition to existing provision of RDDP-2034 DCR, a clause stating that, effort shall be made for provision for PSC blocks along highway/major roads at a distance of every 3 km preferably near the bus stop and in public open spaces has been added. Provision for toilet/urinal blocks for differently able persons will now be insisted.

7) Planting of indigenous trees and preferably native species having capacity to attract bird for nesting, planting of shrubs with grass in between the indigenous trees has been made to improve environmental sustainability.

8) As an incentive for constructing & making Energy Efficient Building additional fungible compensatory area to the extent of 5% over and above than that permissible as per regulation 31(3) has been allowed.

9) It was felt that keeping in view the existence of a large number of oil, fertilizer and other sensitive industries in the M Ward, it is absolutely necessary that MCGM should carry out detailed risk analysis of the area in a time bound manner. Accordingly, a clause has been added in this Regulation.

10) Special Provision

a) Parking Authority: Formulations of Constitution of Parking Authority along with its General functions which will act as guiding principle have been introduced. Hence, on receipt of sanction to this DCPR 2034 from GoM, Parking Authority can start functioning including granting permission of Public Parking Lot.

b) Heritage: Based on the hearing suggestions/objections from Conservation Architects, NGO, Ex-Chairman of MHCC, and with a view to preserve heritage, particularly Grade I & Grade II, the Regulations related to Heritage has been suitably modified.

c) Slum Rehabilitation Scheme: RDDP had suggested the need of a ‘cafeteria’ approach where banquet of options is available for slum up-gradation and redevelopment but since RDDP didn’t suggest any specific alternative approach options, Urban Design Research Institute (UDRI)’s formulation of an alternative
approach for slum up-gradation is accepted by Planning Committee.

d) New Zones - Now additional three zones have been created increasing the total zones to eight. New additions are - Port’s Operational Zone(POZ), Port’s Water Front Development Zone(PWFDZ), Green Zone ( GZ) 

e) This approach will seek to provide trunk infrastructure and amenities to slum communities and allow for incremental slum up-gradation by the slum dwellers individually or by virtue of plot amalgamation. The detailed Institutional framework and corresponding Regulatory modifications for the same as proposed by UDRI is accepted.