The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA), and a group of private developers are working together to turn a 12-acre section of the Worli waterfront into a collection of opulent skyscrapers in a first-of-its-kind rehabilitation project. Adjacent to the Mumbai Coastal Road, the area is considered valuable real estate and is currently marked by slum settlements and a few municipal quarters.
Under the proposed plan, both government and BMC-owned plots—including slum-encumbered and non-slum land—will be amalgamated under Regulation 33(10) of the DCPR-2034 to facilitate redevelopment. While officials tout the proposal as an innovative approach to urban transformation, critics have raised concerns about potential violations of CRZ (Coastal Regulation Zone) norms, displacement of residents, and the project’s underlying intent.
“This is a viable and innovative model to regenerate land resources,” said BMC Commissioner Bhushan Gagrani, defending the collaboration. He added that past experiences, like Bhoiwada estate and Parksite Vikhroli, showed the BMC’s own redevelopment projects often languish for decades.
“In this case, if private developers are willing to do it, then what is the harm? At least the project will be completed.”
The area in question is hemmed in by Dr Annie Besant Road, the Coastal Road, and Khan Abdul Gaffar Khan Road, and includes not only slum clusters but also BMC staff housing, private buildings, and nine municipal societies. In February, a developer reportedly paid ₹16 crore—10% of the land premium—for one of the civic body’s non-slum plots.
The SRA, which has pitched the initiative as a “holistic approach to urban redevelopment”, is yet to clearly disclose where the existing slum dwellers will be relocated. The agency’s letter to the BMC refers to a state Government Resolution aiming to create 2.7 lakh tenements for Project Affected Persons (PAPs), stating the project will also offer free permanent housing to municipal and government staff.
To enable the construction of high-rises, the BMC has proposed two new roads—a 60-foot and a 40-foot-wide road—to connect Dr Annie Besant Road with the Coastal Road promenade. These would include space for bus bays, aiding future transit access.
However, local MLA Aditya Thackeray has urged caution. “Unless the rights of residents—both formal and informal—are secured, the BMC cannot go ahead with roadworks to accelerate development,” he said.
“If this development is not for the locals, then who is it for? When we planned the Coastal Road, the idea was to preserve green space, not to make way for a wall of skyscrapers.”
Thackeray criticised the state leadership, saying, “The CM and the two DCMs are not Mumbaikars. They see Mumbai as a hen that lays golden eggs.”
The Worli waterfront project is being featured in the MMR Economic Growth Hub 2030 blueprint, a state government initiative aimed at transforming the Mumbai Metropolitan Region into a USD 300 billion economy.
As planning and permissions progress, the project is likely to remain under scrutiny—especially concerning environmental clearances, rehabilitation plans, and urban equity for the current residents.
Source: The Times Of India
