Mumbai: Realty legal experts are of the view that the double engine State Government’s General Resolution to allow standalone MHADA buildings to redevelop instead of mandatorily asking them to undergo cluster redevelopment is a viable alternative.
On Tuesday, the State Government reversed the previous Maha Vikas Aghadi government’s Government Resolution that made it compulsory for all MHADA layouts in Mumbai, Konkan, Nashik and Pune to undergo cluster redevelopment.
Under cluster redevelopment, two or more old structures get reconstructed. This also means the need for consensus from that many more housing societies. The latest decision to undo April’s stricture has given relief to old and dilapidated residential buildings.
Chairman of Maharashtra Societies Welfare Association (MahaSeWA) Ramesh Prabhu, said, “The latest directive is more pragmatic, wherein it will become possible for individual buildings to build a consensus. In a cluster project, it becomes difficult to convince multiple societies to revamp; there are differences of opinion. Now, the redevelopment process will get expedited.”
In a cluster setup, the benefit is that a larger area becomes available, resulting in better amenities and more open spaces for residents. However, the path to achieving this is riddled with hurdles and challenges.
Advocate Vinod Sampat, an expert on society-related affairs, explained, “What if the society next to mine is already redeveloped or disagrees to go under cluster redevelopment? The wait gets longer or it may not be eligible for redevelopment.”
The earlier Government Resolution had provided for a window for standalone buildings to undergo redevelopment independently only in “exceptional cases” such as the one referred by Mr Sampat.
The Tuesday’s directive will hasten the redevelopment work with a compromise on more amenities but provides faster relief for societies that have a consensus for a new home.
