To speed up the redevelopment of aged and crumbling buildings in Mumbai, Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) CEO and vice-president Sanjeev Jaiswal stated that No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for redevelopment projects filed with 51% tenant approval will now be granted within six weeks under the Right to Service Act. If the authorities do not deliver within the timeframe, the NOC will be “deemed approved”.
The step is likely to provide a boost to more than 13,000 cessed buildings in Mumbai that are waiting to be redeveloped. “If all parties–tenants, developers, and authorities–live up to their promises, our target of developing 8 lakh affordable homes in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) within the next five years is very much achievable,” Jaiswal said.
The expedition of NOCs under Sections 79A(1a) and 79A(1b) caters to one of the greatest impediments to redevelopment, hold-ups in the granting of approvals even when residents did so with majority consensus. By placing these approvals within the Right to Service Act, Parliament is trying to inject accountability into the system.
Aside from making NOCs more streamlined, a number of other reforms were unveiled during the summit. These encompass the offering of FSI 3.00 or a rehab plus incentive FSI of 75% to 100% for cessed and non-cessed buildings, and a suggestion to permit the utilisation of surplus tenements for transit housing without first making offers to the MCGM or MMRDA.
Developers will also be favoured by a 13% cut in interest rates, instalment-based payment of premiums, and possible GST relaxation on rehabilitation components.
On the housing for rent side, MHADA will be the nodal agency and has suggested a 10-year income tax holiday on rental income, and utilisation of vacant MHADA land for rental housing. A Rental Housing Index is also in the pipeline to assist in fair pricing.
This was announced on the occasion of MHADA’s second redevelopment conference and investors’ summit on April 28. The seminar brought together key players from the real estate sector, including CREDAI national chairman Boman Irani, NAREDCO chairman Niranjan Hiranandani and several other industry leaders and senior MHADA officials.
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Jaiswal concluded the summit with a stern warning to developers and stakeholders, saying, “Take a pledge that whatever project you undertake, it has to be completed on time. The houses have to be handed over as committed and there should not be any injustice to the rehabilitation component.”
© The Indian Express Pvt Ltd
