In a recent update, MHADA is planning on creating about 20,000 affordable homes in the coming years. Speaking about the plan MHADA Vice President and CEO Sanjeev Jaiswal said that authority is focused on the redevelopment of large housing layouts instead of individual buildings. With this strategy, 800-1,000 acres of land in Mumbai will be unlocked.
MHADA’s Shift to Cluster Projects
In the past as well, Mumbai’s redevelopment involved work on single buildings or small groups of two to three buildings. However, as of now, MHADA is now encouraging cluster redevelopment where larger land parcels are redeveloped as housing projects. For the uninformed, MHADA currently has 114 housing layouts in Mumbai’s suburbs and the authority plans to redevelop many of these areas under the cluster model.
Some major projects that are already underway or being planned include -
-
Motilal Nagar
-
SVP Nagar
-
GTB Nagar in Sion
-
Abhyudaya Nagar
-
Kamathipura, Magathane
-
Mandvi Reclamation
-
Adarsh Nagar
-
Aram Nagar.
MHADA Redevelopment: 20,000 Affordable Homes Expected
With the cluster redevelopment projects MHADA is expecting to get about 10 lakh square metres of housing stock in the coming six to seven years. This would translate into around 20,000 affordable housing units which would mostly fall in the 500-700 sq ft category. This will make them suitable for the economically weaker sections and lower income groups of society. The MHADA authority sells these home units based on ready reckoner rates rather than market prices. Doing this keeps these homes affordable as compared to most of the private developments.
Bigger Homes for Existing Residents
Cluster redevelopment will first focus on rehabilitating current residents living in old and small houses. For example, families currently living in 160-200 sq ft units may receive new homes of around 550-650 sq ft after redevelopment. This will significantly improve living conditions in many old housing colonies.
MHADA Redevelopment: Major Projects in Progress
MHADA is also working on several large redevelopment projects across the city. One of the biggest is the BDD Chawl redevelopment. In this project alone 17,000 rehabilitation units will be constructed in Worli.
Secondly, another major project is the Kamathipura Redevelopment which involves about 800 landowners and 7,500 tenants. This project has also received cabinet approval and a developer too has been selected. However, final government clearance for this project is still pending.
Challenges in Affordable Housing
Officials say high housing costs in Mumbai remain a major challenge. According to MHADA, reducing charges such as development premiums, GST, cess and stamp duty for affordable housing projects could potentially lower home prices by up to 25%. Another challenge comes from redevelopment proposals where developers offer larger rehabilitation units than permitted under regulations, which sometimes leads to disputes and delays.
Infrastructure Benefits of Cluster Redevelopment
Large-scale redevelopment also helps in better infrastructure planning. When redevelopment is carried out across 20–30 acre clusters, the cost of roads, drainage, water supply and other facilities is shared across more housing units, making projects more efficient.
Focus on Old and Cess Buildings
Mumbai once had around 19,000 cess buildings, but the number has now reduced to about 13,000 due to redevelopment and structural deterioration. MHADA is also working on an exit policy for cess buildings, with the aim of redeveloping most such structures over the next 10-15 years, except those that remain structurally safe.
Financial Strength and Future Plans
MHADA has also improved its financial position in recent years. The authority’s fixed deposits have grown from about Rs 150 crore earlier to nearly Rs 5,000 crore now, while revenue collection increased by around 38% last year. Cluster redevelopment projects alone are expected to generate around Rs 25,000 crore in premiums over the next five to seven years, while adding a large number of affordable homes in Mumbai. Officials believe that large-scale cluster redevelopment could play a key role in addressing Mumbai’s housing shortage while improving living conditions in ageing residential areas.
