Key Takeaways From Maharashtra's New Housing Policy  

In what is being termed by the media as a people-pleasing tactic with an eye on the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections, Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis earlier this month announced a new housing policy for the state, expressing his government's commitment to provide affordable housing in the Maximum City.

Under the new policy, the state will redevelop buildings on 7,000 plots in 104 layouts of the Maharashtra Housing & Area Development Authority (MHADA) in Greater Mumbai. Developers carrying out this work will get a floor area ratio (FAR) of three for redeveloping plot of up to 2,000 square metres. On paying a premium, they will be eligible for an extra FSI, taking the FSI to four. (FAR, which is also known as floor space index (FSI), is the ratio of a building's total floor area to the size of the piece of land upon which it is built.) According to state government estimates, as many as 30,000 new houses will be available in Greater Mumbai after the policy is implemented.

“All these policy decisions have been made keeping in mind the Housing For All scheme. The government will be taking all the necessary steps to give shelter to the poor," media quoted Fadnavis as saying.

In another step that would see old and dilapildated buildings in the suburbs getting a facelift, the state has decided to extent the cluster redevelopment scheme to suburbs, a policy restricted only to the main city so far. After that, about 10,000 old buildings in the suburbs will see redevelopment.

“Under the new scheme, the suburbs will get a chance of better development and amenities. Non-buildable plots can be developed, and we will get more open spaces,” explained the CM.

Among the other key measures, the state plans to rehabilitate about 85,000 slum dwellers occupying Mumbai Airport-owned land within three kilometres of their current location, formulate a policy on redeveloping Dharavi, the area infamously known as biggest slum settlement in Asia, and redevelopment of transit camps.

Even if the CM is eying to score better over his opponents in the coming municipal body elections through the new policy, the new measures will be a big step towards bridging the gap between the housing demand and its supply in India's financial capital.