Mumbai: The Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada) has decided to undertake the cluster redevelopment of Pratiksha Nagar in Sion on its own, rather than handing the project to a private developer, thereby retaining control of the 25-hectare layout and the additional housing stock generated through the redevelopment.
In a first for the housing authority, Pratiksha Nagar will be redeveloped through the Engineering, Procurement and Construction (EPC) model, according to officials aware of the developments. Under this arrangement, Mhada will remain responsible for the project and hire a contractor to construct the buildings for a fixed fee.
This marks a departure from the Construction & Development Agency (C&DA) model used for some of its major redevelopment projects, under which Mhada would hand over a plot to a private developer. The developer would finance and execute the project, give some flats to Mhada for its affordable housing lottery draws, but keep the majority of the homes to sell for profit. C&DA projects have previously been awarded for the redevelopment of Mhada layouts including Motilal Nagar, Abhyudaya Nagar, Bandra Reclamation, Adarsh Nagar in Worli and GTB Nagar.
By undertaking the Pratiksha Nagar redevelopment project itself, Mhada will retain the additional housing stock for future affordable housing sales. The layout spans approximately 25 hectares and has 216 buildings comprising about 10,000 residential units. Of these, 90 buildings were earmarked as transit accommodation over the past few decades, while the remaining buildings comprise homes allotted to beneficiaries through multiple lottery draws.
Under the plan, the first phase of the cluster redevelopment will focus on dangerous and dilapidated buildings. Most of these are transit camps, some of which have remained in use for decades. Around 5,508 residents currently live in the transit camps.
Mhada is also considering accommodating unauthorised families living in these camps as part of the redevelopment. A senior Mhada official said families identified as encroachers would also be provided transit accommodation until the courts decide their cases.
“In the next few days, a proposal on the EPC model will be sent to the state housing department for approval,” the official added.
Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis had announced in March that Mhada would itself undertake the redevelopment of Pratiksha Nagar under the cluster redevelopment scheme. According to the Mhada official, the authority wants to promote cluster redevelopment rather than allow individual buildings and housing societies to undertake redevelopment independently, as this would enable common amenities and infrastructure to be planned across the layout.
The move is also aimed at creating more housing stock, as Mhada currently has limited vacant land in Mumbai on which it can construct new affordable homes. The additional housing generated through the redevelopment will therefore be available for future sale.
The cluster redevelopment plan excludes buildings constructed around 15 years ago, as these are considered fit for habitation and do not need to be demolished immediately.
The project’s timeline has not yet been finalised, as administrative approvals are pending and the bidding process is yet to begin.
