January 24, 2026: The Mumbai Board of the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) has rejected a demand from residents of the N.M. Joshi Marg BDD Chawl is seeking one parking space per rehabilitated home under the ongoing redevelopment project. The decision has been formally communicated to residents through a letter, leading to discontent among affected households.
MHADA is currently implementing the redevelopment of the BDD Chawls at Worli, N.M. Joshi Marg, and Naigaon, where construction of rehabilitation buildings is in progress. Parking provisions form part of the redevelopment plan. Under the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) norms, one parking space is mandatory for every four housing units. Taking into account the growing demand for vehicle parking, MHADA’s Mumbai Board adopted a more liberal policy of providing one parking space for every two houses across the project.
However, in the Worli BDD redevelopment, which was designated as a special project, MHADA provided one parking space per house. This difference in treatment has triggered dissatisfaction among residents of N.M. Joshi Marg and Naigaon, where the same facility has not been extended. Residents from N.M. Joshi Marg submitted a formal representation to MHADA seeking parity with the Worli project.
In its response, MHADA cited technical and financial constraints. The authority said that ground-floor construction of the rehabilitated buildings at N.M. Joshi Marg has already been completed, making any structural modification unviable at this stage. The Board further stated that changes to the approved layout were no longer feasible due to budgetary limitations.
The rejection has intensified resentment among residents, who view parking as a critical amenity given increasing vehicle ownership. While acknowledging that alterations to existing buildings may not be possible, residents have proposed alternative measures, such as constructing a separate parking facility or allocating parking spaces within sale-component buildings.
The matter is now set to be escalated to the state government. The issue will be taken up with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, and a meeting with him is expected soon, said Krushnakant Nalge, President of the N.M. Joshi Marg BDD Redevelopment Committee.
