Buying a house to get easier, Mhada may get more space

For millions of people dreaming of owning a house at an affordable price in the city, there is some good news. 

According to chief minister Prithviraj Chavan, the Mumbai board of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada) can get a 95,28,032 sq metre of additional housing space if all of its 104 colonies are redeveloped under section 33(5) of the Mhada Act. 

Chavan said this during the winter assembly session last week after some MLAs had put forth a question regarding the redevelopment process of the housing authority.   

In a written reply to the question, Chavan stated that the total area of the 104 colonies spread across Mumbai is close to 1493.81 hectares. 

“If we go for total redevelopment of these colonies using the Development Control Rules 33(5), the total Floor Space Index (FSI) available will be approximately 2,98,76,200 sq metres. Out of this, a  89,05,230 sq metre area will be needed for the existing tenement holders. The developers or the housing societies may get an additional FSI of 66,78,922 sq metre for their contribution.

"Out of the rest 1,42,92,0448 sq metre area, if there is a division of 2:1 between Mhada on one side and developer of housing society on the other, then the authority can get 95,28,032 sq metre of housing space which can be directly used for implementation of affordable housing,” stated the chief minister. 

However, it is easier said than done. Out of the 3,701 buildings available for redevelopment, only 409 have sent their proposals to the authority. Moreover, only 114 buildings have been given a No Objection Certificate (NoC) to carry out redevelopment work.

According to sources, the government now accepts the fact that to fulfill the political promise of affordable housing, the authority was not utilised to the fullest.

“We were simply overlooking the fact that the board has to create a housing stock out of redevelopment and not just earn premium. Now, after so long, the political leadership seems to have finally woken up to realise this fact,” said a source in the authority.