June 21, 2025: One of Mumbai’s flagship slum redevelopment schemes — encompassing Mata Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar and Kamraj Nagar in Ghatkopar — is attracting scrutiny, though not for its scale or ambition. The project marks the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority’s (MMRDA) first foray into slum rehabilitation. However, the authority has committed to maintaining the 11 rehabilitation buildings for just two years, rather than the ten-year standard set by the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA).
Spread across 31.83 hectares, the Rs 8,498-crore project aims to rehabilitate 16,575 families, each receiving a 300 sq ft one-bedroom flat. The plan includes gardens, health centres, schools, and 5,000 additional homes for residents displaced by infrastructure development. Bids for the first phase — involving 6,144 units — were invited on Thursday, with work to be completed in 36 months, followed by a 24-month Defect Liability Period (DLP).
In February 2024, the SRA revised its post-construction maintenance requirement from three to ten years, following a fire in Goregaon’s Unnat Nagar that claimed seven lives and injured 62 people. The decision was meant to ensure safer and more durable housing.
Even the Dharavi Redevelopment Project, led by Navbharat Mega Developers (a Government-Adani venture), has committed to ten years of maintenance.
Architect Nitin Killawala criticised the MMRDA’s shortfall, stating: “Two years is insufficient. Waterproofing is always the first failure point. Without proper upkeep, these buildings risk turning into vertical slums.”
Documents accessed by Hindustan Times confirm that the two-year maintenance falls under standard DLP terms — a detail that has raised alarm before construction has even begun.
Source: Hindustan Times
