7/27/2019 Hindustan Times (Mumbai)(2013!08!17) Page42

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htestatesMUMBAI, SATURDAY AUGUST 17, 2013, 04 PAGES www.hindustantimes.com

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Anubhuti Matta htspecialprojects@hindustantimes.com

As per a state govern-ment announcementon July 26, redevel-

oping cessed buildings,those built before September

1969, will be allowed addition-al FSI (floor space index).While this may boost redevel-opment activity, experts

worry that Mumbai will not

have enough infrastructure tosupport this increasing num-ber of homes.

"The increase in FSI willlead to exactly what happened

with the slum rehabilitationactivity prime areas in thecity were developed, and oth-ers not even considered forredevelopment. I don't expecta significant increase in thehousing stock, and without aregulation, the fate of thisproposal is unlikely to changethe redevelopment scenario,"says Pankaj Joshi, executivedirector, Urban DesignResearch Institute.

"There will be a little pres-sure on the infrastructure butit is important that we changethe condition in which peoplelive," says Sachin Ahir, minis-ter of state, housing. "We aregoing to give a fixed time limitfor tenants to agree to rede-

velopment, which is currentlyslow because residents take alot of time to agree. However,supply is slow to catch up,demand continues to rise."

According to the new rules,the buildings constructed

before September 1969 willget more FSI, and carpet areaadditional to the minimumstandard of 225 square feet.(See box: Decoding FSI)

"The new rules will pro-mote cluster redevelopmenttoo, since if buildings redevel-op together, they can use theextra space around for recre-ational facilities," says Ahir.

The advantagesReal estate experts say

such incentives will alsoattract more builders to rede-

velopment, which they other-wise find unprofitable due tothe rise in cost of cement,sand, steel and construction.

"This can be a win-win situ-ation. Residents will get anincreased minimum carpetarea of 300 sq ft, while

builders will get more space to

plan their projects," says DilipShah from Redevelopment ofHousing Societies, an organi-sation that helps resolve hous-ing-related problems.

Some builders say that thiswill help create more housingstock too. Nikhil Bhatia, headof western region for CBRichard Ellis (CBRE) South

Asia, a property consultancyfirm, says, "This additional

benefit will open up smallerplots for redevelopment."

"It is a welcome move butthe city needs a higher FSIgiven the shortage of housingstock and increase in con-struction costs," says DiipeshBhagtani, executive director,Jaycee Homes, a real estateconstruction company.

The concernsSome builders and experts

are sceptical about the impactof the decision on both rede-

velopment activity and thecondition of old buildings.Joshi says that only lesserpopulated areas with biggerplots such as Sion, Parel,Byculla, Mahim and Dadar

will benefit most from themove, while densely populatedareas such as CrawfordMarket, Bhendi Bazaar, andchawls will not.

"A negligible increase inFSI is not a real incentive,"says Chetan Narain, develop-er, Narains Group.

Housing activists say it is ashortsighted approach todevelopment with feweradvantages. ActivistKrishnaraj Rao says that resi-dents of old cluttered build-ings may get a bigger common

space with better living condi-tions, but in the long term itwill lead to shortage ofresources like electricityand water.

cut out and keep

PROPERTY RATES IN MUMBAI

Worli 27000 to 48000

Lowe r Pare l 2 1000 to 38000

P rabh ad ev i 2 6000 to 45 000

Shivaji Park 18000 to 35000

WESTERN SUBURBS

Location Rate (per sq ft*)

Bandra West 26000 to 46000

Ban dra East 1 8000 to 27000

Khar East 16000 to 21000

Kh ar We st 23 00 0 t o 4 00 00

Santacruz East 13000 to 23500

Santacruz West 18000 to 30000

Vile Parle East 16000 to 21000

Vile Parle West 19000 to 27000

Andheri West 14000 to 18500

Andheri East 13000 to 16000

SOUTH MUMBAI

Location Rate (per sq ft*)

Colaba* 33000 to 48000

Cuf fe Parade 35000 to 71000

Nariman Point 58000 to 92000

Churchgate* 32000 to 5 0000

Marine Drive* 45000 to 70000

Malab ar Hi ll 6 0000 to 76 000

Walk eshwar 38000 to 70000

Nepeansea Road 47000 to 74000

Peddar Road 32000 to 56000

Kemps Corner 36000 to 58000

Warden Road 35000 to 60000

Altamount Road 45000 to 72000

Bombay Central 20500 to 32000

Mah al ax mi 220 00 to 42 00 0

SOURCE: KNIGHT FRANK (PLEASE NOTE THAT THE QUOTED RATES ARE THE APPROXIMATE

ASKING RATES AND MAY VARY DEPENDING ON THE MARKET CONDITIONS)*

The increase in FSI for cessed buildings is likely to boost redevelopment of old structures,but experts worry that Mumbai doesn't have the infrastructure to support these new homes

WATCH THIS SPACEFSI refers to the ratio of thetotal built-up area to the areaof the building's plot. Byincreasing it from 2.5 to 3,as announced, residents ofdilapidated cessed buildingswill benefit the most, and willbe incentivised to opt forredevelopment.

Currently, there are morethan 15,000 cessed build-ings, constructed before

1969, which pay a periodiccess or tax, commonly knownas the repair fund, used forbuilding maintenance.

Earlier, cessed buildingswere classified under threecategories; A: constructedbefore 1940; B: built before1950; C: built before 1970.Now, the state has combinedall these categories and allot-ted them the same FSI.

"It is a disastrousdecision, taken to favour

city builders. The govern-ment needs to make a long-term plan to decongestMumbai such as improvingconnectivity and bringingother civic amenities beforeplanning more

construction."

GR VORA, resident ofSion and pathologist

QuoteHanger"Only about 1,200 buildings inMumbai have been redeveloped in thelast 22 years. If the state gov-ernment is serious aboutattracting real estatebuilders to redevelopment,it should offer more FSI andother incentives such assingle-window clearances."

ANAND GUPTA,

general secretary, BuildersAssociation of India

DECODING FSI

ILLUSTRATION: SHRIKRISHANA PATKAR

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