Slum Rehabilitation On The Fast Track, Mumbai To Be Slum-Free Soon

Government plans to introduce a new policy that will expedite SRA Projects

In recent times, we have seen a record number of slum dwellers being rehabilitated in their new homes across Mumbai. This transformation from living in slums into decent housing units has changed their outlook on such slum rehabilitation projects. These marginalised segments of our society are now quite happy and look forward to joining the mainstream of society by leading a more meaningful and respectful life.

Recently, Deputy Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Shri Devendra Fadnavis, said that the government plans to introduce a new policy that will expedite SRA projects. Builders will be invited through a tender process for the construction of buildings while the government will handle preliminary work such as clearing plots and determining the eligibility of slum dwellers. Here, the builder will focus solely on the construction of buildings. This has given a fillip to developers to come forward and take up such SRA projects.

Last week, Mumbai's leading SRA developer, Omkar Realtors, clocked a recorded delivery of 3,000 rehab units in its Bhoiwada (Parel-Sewri belt) residential project with its latest handover of 370 rehabilitation units under the state government's SRA scheme. The project now houses over 16,000 slum dwellers, which will get scaled to approx. 25,000 slum dwellers at the end of the current phase.

Mr. Umesh Jandial, Chief Business Officer, Omkar Realtors, said, "Slum rehabilitation task in Mumbai has a lot of ground to cover with the city needing to rehabilitate approx. 60 lakh slum dwellers more, which means we need to construct another 10-12 lakh houses. Apart from creating a slum-free Mumbai, which is critical for its image being the financial capital, Mumbai has a lot to gain in terms of creating a transformed living environment for the weakest society, freeing space for public and infrastructure, addressing health, crime and social issues, boosting state revenues and creating additional housing supply for the general public. As a key player, Brand Omkar is working towards scaling up its high-quality deliveries, and last week we crossed the 3,000-house delivery milestone at Omkar's Bhoiwada (parel-sewri) project; in addition to delivering more than 16,000 houses in the SRA space over the past decade."

Slums are characterized by cramped living conditions, poor sanitation, and limited access to basic services. The Government and the authority in Mumbai are working to change that. SRA's rehabilitation projects are not only providing better living conditions for slum dwellers but also creating employment opportunities and boosting the economy.

Commenting on the changing perspective, Mr. Vivek Mohanani, Managing Director & CEO of Ekta World, said, "The redevelopment of slums or chawls is a tedious process as there are many stakeholders involved. Slum redevelopment is an important growth process for any large and growing city in the world. It helps improve the lifestyle quotient of slum dwellers. When slum dwellers are rehabilitated in decent housing units, these slum areas are cleared and make way for high-rise structures that dot the city skyline. This invigorates the city and improves our image internationally. We are happy that the government is taking a keen interest in slum redevelopment and proposing positive measures that will benefit people from the lower strata of society by providing them with improved living conditions and a better lifestyle."

Slum rehabilitation has been a major concern in Mumbai for several years. The SRA was established to provide a comprehensive solution to the problem of slums in Mumbai by providing better living conditions to slum dwellers through rehabilitation, relocation and redevelopment of slums. The authority was created to provide slum dwellers with alternative accommodation and to ensure infrastructure in these areas is improved. SRA development as a housing segment is very niche and there are only a handful of developers who are developing projects for slum dwellers. This is due to the many hurdles that developers face, even before the project gets into the construction phase.