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ShareThe government will soon repeal the Urban Land Ceiling Act, 1976. In an all-party meet held in Mantralaya on Thursday, the chief minister indicated his government would make provisions to repeal the Act. He said as part of pre-conditions of Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, repealing the Act would release almost 500 hectares of the land in the state. Officials of the Urban Development Department claimed that real estate prices in Mumbai would go down by 40 per cent once the Act is abolished.
The government has acquired 2,066 hectares of land from defaulters in the last two years under the Act, including 433 hectares in Mumbai, 271 in Pune, 354 in Thane, 361 in Nagpur, 377 in Ulhasnagar and 183 hectares in Nashik. The state was bringing in the housing scheme from November 1, and people would be taken into consideration before scrapping the Act.
CPI leaders alleged that the failure of the Act lay in the nexus of builders, bureaucracy, land owners and builders. Prakash Reddy of CPI said: "At least 30,000 acres land in Mumbai costing Rs90,000 crore could be released if the government implements the Act. Which means more than half of the debt of the state can be paid off with the fund. Over 300 land owners in Mumbai and suburbs hold land which is more than 500 sqm, the limit for holding maximum land as per the Act." If the government tries to repeal the Act forcibly, they would gather people's support to fight against the move, he said.
