Mumbai: The long-delayed cluster redevelopment of the 34-acre Kamathipura has cleared its final administrative hurdle. Mhada on Thursday signed a crucial construction and development agency agreement with a consortium of builders, paving the way for construction to begin this Diwali.The consortium comprises Bhagirathi Housing Pvt Ltd and Mathi Developers.Established in the late 18th century as a settlement for kamathis (construction workers), the neighbourhood evolved over decades into a dense industrial hub of textile mill workers, artisanal workshops, and the city’s most prominent red-light district. Today, the enclave has turned into a maze of crumbling, century-old chawls and narrow alleys that severely hamper transit and emergency access.Redevelopment will bring over 475 cessed and 249 non-cessed dilapidated structures across lanes 1-15 under a single integrated master plan. A key component of the proposed plan, which has been accessed by TOI, is the extensive widening of the neighbourhood’s choked transit corridors. Arterials like Foras Road and Stable Street will undergo major expansions to allow smooth vehicular flow, clear bottlenecks and ensure unhindered movement for emergency services throughout the precinct.“The goal of redevelopment is not merely to construct new buildings but to also carry forward Kamathipura’s social, cultural and economic life,” said Vivek Bhole, principal architect of the master plan.The project directly impacts 8,001 eligible residential and commercial occupants, along with roughly 800 landowners. Residential tenants will receive self-contained homes, while local businesses will be allocated commercial spaces tailored to their operational footprint. Additionally, the state housing agency expects to net significant housing stock to bolster public urban inventory.To maintain the precinct’s economic activity, the master plan maps dedicated ground-floor commercial units and workspaces to accommodate existing informal and cottage industries. This includes garment workshops, overnight bakeries, scrap recycling networks tied to Chor Bazaar and Dharavi, and roughly 200 women employed in local bidi rolling.The layout will integrate sustainable utility systems, including an on-site sewage treatment plant that will allow reuse of water in toilet flushes, rainwater harvesting setups, solar energy management, and piped natural gas connections.The newly constructed earthquake-resistant highrises will be in a prime south Mumbai location, with the Jagannath Shankarseth Metro station (line 3) only 500m away and directly adjacent to the planned Nagpada junction Metro station (line 11).Welcoming the milestone, local MLA Amin Patel expressed confidence in the project’s layout and execution model. “The planning, ventilation and amenities are good. People will have privacy now. Under their tripartite agreement with Mhada and the builders, residents will be giving the keys to Mhada and taking the keys from Mhada,” he said.The work will be executed under Regulation 33(9) of Development Control and Promotion Regulations-2034.
