Shiv Sena leader writes to PM, President for nod to MHADA Act amendment

In separate letters to the President and the PM, dated June 12, the Lok Sabha MP from Mumbai South said a bill amending the MHADA Act, 1976, was passed in September 2020 by the Maharashtra legislature

Shiv Sena leader and former Union minister Arvind Sawant has appealed to the Centre to grant approval to an amendment to the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Act to protect the interest of residents of dilapidated and "cessed" buildings by allowing either repair or redevelopment of such structures.

He has written to President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi in this regard, days after the collapse of a residential building in Malwani, in Mumbai's suburb of Malad, left 12 people dead.

Also Read: Malwani building collapse: Nothing but lawlessness, says Bombay HC, initiates judicial probe

In separate letters to the President and the PM, dated June 12, the Lok Sabha MP from Mumbai South said a bill amending the MHADA Act, 1976, was passed in September 2020 by the Maharashtra legislature.

"Since the bill passed by both houses of the state legislature is pending for your (the Centre's) approval, the state government is not in a position to carry out either repairs or redevelopment of these buildings," he said.

Sawant said after the June 9 building collapse in Malwani, the Bombay high Court suo motu (on its own) ordered a judicial inquiry into the incident.

"This proves how essential is the approval to the amendment of the Act and how the Act is important as lives of citizens living in such structures are at stake," the Sena MP said.

Sawant said the amendment allows the MHADA (Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority) to acquire land and such buildings and complete their development if left incomplete by the developer.

The bill says at least 51 per cent of residents of such buildings have to agree to redevelopment and also provides compensation to the owner of the land/building, he said.

There are nearly 16,000 buildings which fall in the category of cessed buildings in Mumbai, the Sena leader said.

Cessed buildings are old tenanted properties (built before 1969) whose residents are required to pay a cess to the MHADA for their maintenance.

Some of these cessed buildings are on the land of Mumbai Port trust, NTC and other organisations who neither repair or redevelop them nor allow government authorities like MHADA to carry out their redevelopment, Sawant said.

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