The BMC will pay Rs 473 crore for 58 acres of Airports Authority of India-owned land at Dahisar, clearing the way for the redevelopment of buildings and slums from Andheri, Juhu to Dahisar. The 58 acres will be developed as a park/garden, the largest in the suburbs.
Municipal Commissioner and Administrator I S Chahal said the height restrictions on account of the high transmission towers at Dahisar will go allowing buildings to go up to 25 mts and make them financially viable. “By paying Rs 473 crore the BMC will pave the way for redevelopment of thousands of buildings which will bring in at least Rs 50,000 crore in premium to the civic body,” he said.
In a letter to AAI Chairman Sanjeev Kumar, Chahal said, “At present high-frequency communication equipment has been installed by AAI at their own lands at Andheri West, Juhu and on the land under reference. By virtue of civic aviation notifications published in December 2020 building height restrictions have been imposed in and around the installed location of this high-frequency communication equipment. Due to these restrictions, the number of redevelopments, and slum rehabilitation projects are getting reduced building heights thereby hampering their commercial viability.”
It was in 2017 that the union cabinet approved the use of the land for a metro car shed and for it to be swapped with the state government land at Gorai. However, AAI pointed out that the ready reckoner rate for the Gorai land was less than that for Dahisar and demanded the difference be paid upfront. Earlier the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) that is executing most of the metro projects in Mumbai and MMR accepted to pay.
The State Government in 2018-19 scrapped the metro car shed at Dahisar as it was decided to build it either in Aarey in Kanjurmarg. Thereafter no decision was taken on the land said, Chahal. The State Urban Development Department directed the BMC to take over the land from the AAI. In return, AAI will be offered 40 acres of government land at Gorai and the difference in the price which amounts to Rs 473 crore will be paid by BMC.
Chahal said the largest park/garden in the suburbs is 5-7 acres. There is none like Azad Maidan or Oval Maidan and often there is the complaint that the suburbs are given step-motherly treatment. Secondly, the high-frequency radars are for inter-continental flights and the Gorai land is a hillock where the transmission towers can be installed, he said. He then proposed to the government to give the land to BMC which it will develop as a park/garden.
