The move to offer additional floor space index (FSI) to developers in the city’s suburbs has lost ground. Owing to the delays in accordance of the FSI — which is an indicator of the amount of construction that can be taken up on a plot — several developers, who had earlier applied for the FSI hike, have started withdrawing their applications.
The state had raised the base FSI in the suburbs from 1 to 1.33 last March with an intention of bringing the construction index in the suburbs on par with the island city. Developers interested in taking up the additional FSI had to pay a premium to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and state government on the basis of the ready reckoner rates. The cash-strapped civic body was looking for a revenue boost by offering developers the additional FSI.
While the corporation has been procession applications from the interested developers, the process of granting the additional FSI has been on hold due to petitions against the move being heard in the Bombay high court.
Unable to wait any longer, developers have begun to file withdrawal applications and are demanding a refund of the premium deposited. A senior official from the buildings department said that at least 35 withdrawal applications have already been filed in the western suburbs - Bandra to Dahisar. The western suburbs had, originally, received the best response with over 250 developers applying for additional FSI.
Now, instead of putting up with delays, many developers have decided to purchase transfer of development rights (TDR) to continue construction activity. Following the FSI hike, TDR rates had dropped and thus many developers have cashed in on the reduced rates.
According to civic officials, the builders withdrawing will be a grave financial loss for the BMC. While disclosing the budgetary allocation for the next fiscal, municipal commissioner Swadhin Kshatriya had referred to the premium from developers as a source to boost the civic body’s revenue.
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