Mumbai’s first SRA project ‘illegal’

The state government’s dream to make Mumbai a world-class slum-free city by 2022 seems to be a distant dream. The maximum city’s first big Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) project located at Hanuman Nagar in Akurli village, Kandivali (east) has been termed illegal by the Mumbai Suburban District (MSD) collector’s report. According to the then suburban collector Shekhar Channe, the builder (Ruchipriya Developer) allegedly began construction on the 10-acre plot without mandatory approvals from the state revenue and forest department.

However, the builder Kiran Hemani claimed that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and Maharashtra Housing and Development Authority (Mhada) had transferred the same land for the project. The developer had got the plot for free from Mhada in 2010 after the decision of the Mumbai Suburban District (MSD) collector. However, the order of the collector was subject to the final approval from the state revenue and forest department, which allegedly never came.

The alleged irregularities came to light when the MSD collector held a hearing of the Hanuman Nagar SRA scheme case in 2015. The MSD collector immediately issued a “stop work” notice on July 31, 2015 for construction on the encroachment-free land. The SRA also issued “stop work” notice on August 14, 2015. The developer (Ruchipriya) has built more than three lakh sq.ft construction for slum rehabilitation till August 2015 on the said land.

According Mr Channe, the land belonged to the state government and was transferred to the housing and special assistance department for slum improvement project under the Prime Minister’s Grant project. “The order of the collector was subject to the final approval of the revenue and forest department. The revenue department did not give its approval to the developer for its SRA project, the action of the developer amounts to grabbing of land,” Mr Chenne stated in his order dated April 25, 2016. He also mentioned that Ruchirpriya Developer cannot be allowed to be in unauthorised possession of government land.

However, speaking to The Asian Age, Mr Hemani claimed that he had taken all the necessary permissions from the departments concerned. “The Mhada had handed over the land to us for development purpose, not for protection. We are not security agents. We had given the assurance to build 5,000 homes for project-affected families along with 17,000 for slum dwellers,” Mr Hemani said, adding, “We invested more than Rs 100 crore in the project. If this is the stand of the government, no builder will come forward for SRA development.”

Mr Hemani said the state government should have firm policies and decisions should be taken within stipulated time. “Builders make huge investments and have to pay interest on the loan taken from banks,” he said.