Twin city’s water, infra woes worsen

Mumbai: Already staring at crumbling infrastructure and an acute water crisis, high-density growth through various government-oriented schemes has further aggravated the woes of Mira-Bhayandar, which is spread over 79.4 sq.km. and has a population of over 12 lakh. In addition, it has a floating population averaging 3 lakh.

To provide relief against exorbitant prices of residential properties by creating adequate and affordable accommodation stock, the state government has introduced a series of incentives including additional floor space index to builders who participate in housing schemes mooted by Mhada and MMRDA. Under these schemes, huge land parcels in the Mira Road belt are being commercially exploited with riders to create a specific number of cheap housing units allocated to the needy through lucky draws.

While the government has failed to fulfil its promise of augmenting water supply by 5 MLD in lieu of incentive-linked development under Mhada scheme, the Mira-Bhayandar Municipal Corporation is yet to prepare the impact assessment report which evaluates whether the region has capacity to take on additional burden.