Govt revives plan to raze Mumbai airport slums, in situ rehab proposed

The land around Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is owned by the Airports Authority of India and leased to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and the airport operator

MUMBAI: The Adani Group-led Mumbai International Airport Limited (MIAL) could expand the Mumbai airport by 15% if the slum settlements on its periphery are cleared. While previous attempts to clear these settlements stayed grounded, there is a renewed push due to the impending demolition of Terminal-1.

The land around Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is owned by the Airports Authority of India and leased to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and the airport operator. Over decades, slums encroached on the AAI land, occupying 275 acres. (Satish Bate/Hindustan Times)

Together, the land vacated by the slums and that freed up by razing the old terminal could give MIAL room to expand its operations, including runway and terminal infrastructure. It is not known whether the land will also be commercially exploited.

The land around Mumbai’s Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport (CSMIA) is owned by the Airports Authority of India (AAI) and leased to the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and the airport operator.

Over decades, slums encroached on the AAI land, occupying 275 acres. These densely populated, multi-level informal settlements in Kurla and Santacruz have crept right up to the airport’s boundary, posing serious security and flight safety challenges during aircraft landings.

While the last attempt at redeveloping the ‘airport slums’ was made a decade ago, preparations are underway once more. This time, MMRDA sources say, slum residents eligible for rehabilitation will be re-housed in situ, which is likely to make them more receptive to the plan.

“We will use the model used in the redevelopment of Ramabai Nagar and Kamraj Nagar in Ghatkopar, where the slum residents were rehabilitated in situ,” said an MMRDA official. A proposal is yet to be prepared for the airport slums. “Despite the previous count of slum-dwellers standing at 85,000-90,000, MMRDA will commission a fresh survey,” said the official.

However, there is one significant difference between redevelopment of the airport slums and at Ramabai Nagar – restrictions on the height of buildings near the airport. “This was not the case at Ramabai Nagar, where 11 towers of 22 storeys each are being constructed,” the MMRDA official said. Once the slum-dwellers are rehabilitated, around 100 acres will be transferred to CSMIA to support future infrastructure growth.

RTI activist Anil Galgali, who has been following this airport slum redevelopment issue for years, said the process must be transparent. “Last time, there was corruption in the process and the government miserably failed. This time, the authorities should ensure that they provide in-situ rehabilitation and the process is transparent. The slum residents simply cannot be displaced to other areas in the city,” said Galgali.