CM Devendra Fadnavis approaches Centre for salt pan land release

PM Modi with Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai. (Source: Twitter/PMOIndia/File)

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Thursday approached the Centre with a demand to formulate a redevelopment policy for salt pan land in Mumbai. The development comes two days after Fadnavis had sanctioned a proposal for the unlocking of No Development Zones and salt pan land to generate social housing and open space in Mumbai’s new development plan.

While the commercial capital has around 5,400 acres of salt pans, Mumbai’s new development plan has proposed unlocking of around 827 acre of salt pans as part of the plan. Overall, a total of 9,226 acre of public and privately-owned land — currently out of bounds for development — is proposed to be added to the city’s developable land bank in the new plan.

According to the proposal, if the owners of the land construct affordable homes and social amenities on 33 per cent of the built-up space and hand it over free of cost to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation and set aside another 33 per cent area for public open spaces, the proposal is to allow them to build up to three times the remaining plot area, or an FSI of 3. On Thursday, Fadnavis, who was attending the Western Regional Council (WRC) meet in Gandhinagar, raised the salt pan issue at the council meet.

He demanded that the Centre evolves a redevelopment policy for the salt pans. Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, who was chairing the meet, has asked department officials to convene a meet to discuss the demand. Fadnavis also directed state’s Chief Secretary Sumit Mullick, who was present at the meet, to coordinate with the Union secretaries in this regard.

Fadnavis also raised the issue of redevelopment of slums on Centre-owned lands in Mumbai. According to officials, slum encroachments have come up on 547 acre of central lands.