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After much delay, the Maharashtra government has finally approved Mumbai city Development Plan (DP), which will be valid till 2034. It aims to create eight million new jobs in Mumbai city by 2034. The plan is tuned for the New Age knowledge workers.
The State government had been working on the DP since July 2009 but that DP was cancelled in April 2015 and fresh plan was prepared, which was sanctioned by the State government on Tuesday but announced on Wednesday. This new plan had received 72,482 suggestions and objections.
Affordable housing
Principal Secretary (Urban Development) Nitin Kareer told mediapersons on Wednesday that under the new plan, an attempt has been made to make maximum land available for affordable housing. In the past, certain areas were designated as No Development Zone (NDZ). Such areas were designated as NDZ for developing them in the future. Today, some NDZ is being opened up.
A part of such land would be used for low-cost housing and social infrastructure. About 330 hectares of salt-pan lands not affected by CRZ would be made available for such housing development, he said.
Municipal Commissioner of Greater Mumbai, Ajoy Mehta, said the development plan has unreserved 3,355 hectares of public and privately owned land parcels, which currently fall under NDZ for low-cost housing and social infrastructure.
The new plan targets one million affordable homes in Mumbai city. In Island city area of Mumbai, the Floor Space Index (FSI) would be increased to 3, while for commercial spaces depending on the availability of roads, it could be increased up to 5. The plan will also help create new parks, homes for the aged, temporary farmers market and parking facilities.
Focus on commercial space
Kareer said that for years, the precedence was given to housing over the office and commercial property. But in the new development plan, commercial spaces are also given equal importance. In the Mumbai city, job opportunities need to be created for the organised sector, therefore, commercial spaces are important, which has been incentivised in the plan.
Areas of over 12,859 hectares, which were ecologically very sensitive, have been designated as Natural areas and in such areas, no construction would be allowed. In the past, such areas were added NDZ but some exclusion such as creating IT parks was provided but the new plan excludes all construction in such areas. In the sensitive Aarey colony, other than the metro car sheds, no other construction would be allowed, he said.
The DP will be notified in the next 10 to 15 days. The sanctioned plan will come into force a month after its notification.
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