Housing projects with rehab units to be audited: Minister

The audit will be completed within 30 days, minister of state for urban development Madhuri Misal told the legislative assembly on Tuesday

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government has ordered an audit into housing projects in the city wherein developers were required to hand over tenements to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) for Permanent Transit Camps (PTC) and Project Affected Persons (PAP) in exchange for additional floor space index (FSI).

Minister of state for urban development Madhuri Misal (HT Photo)

The audit will be completed within 30 days, minister of state for urban development Madhuri Misal told the legislative assembly on Tuesday.

Misal admitted that some developers had violated the Development Control Regulations (DCR) by selling tenements meant for rehabilitation in the open market. Calling it a potential major corruption case, she said criminal proceedings would be initiated against errant developers as well as complicit BMC officials.

Misal was responding to allegations of corruption by developers in connivance with BMC officials implementing housing schemes under DCR 33(11) and 33(20)(B).

Under the DCPR 2034, Regulation 33(11) governs the construction of PTC tenements for slum rehabilitation projects, and allows higher FSI and additional sale components to make redevelopment financially viable. Section 33(20)(B), introduced in October 2024, permits higher FSI for affordable housing and rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) tenements on private land, often for PAPs.

During the discussion in the assembly, BJP legislator Mihir Kotecha alleged that developers had shown in-situ PTC housing in project plans but instead built commercial shops and luxury apartments and sold them off.

“In Mulund alone, flats worth over ₹100 crore have been sold. Across Mumbai, the scale of the scam exceeds ₹2,000 crore,” Kotecha alleged.

While the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) had acknowledged the irregularities, BMC officials were misleading the House, the BJP MLA said.

“Will they be suspended? Will action be taken against the BMC officers who misled the assembly?” he asked.

Responding to the allegations, Misal admitted that while PTC tenements were indeed converted into two- and three-bedroom flats in Mulund, there was no evidence that they were sold off.

“I have realised that the matter is not limited to Mulund only. This is happening across Mumbai city. Developers availing benefits of additional FSI are not handing over tenements for PTC and PAP to the civic body. We will conduct a vigilance audit in 30 days and action will be taken based on the findings,” the minister of state announced.

Misal acknowledged that the BMC had lost valuable revenue owing to cheating by developers and assured that criminal cases would be registered against them, as demanded by BJP legislator Sanjay Kelkar.

“There is a possibility of major corruption in the implementation of the schemes. The government will not spare anyone, and developers and BMC officials will be booked under relevant charges based on findings of the report,” she noted.

Earlier during the discussion, Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Sunil Prabhu had alleged that officials bought slum tenements at a meagre price and later sold the redeveloped PAP tenements at higher rates. Another Shiv Sena (UBT) legislator Varun Sardesai claimed that around 200 officials were involved in such corruption including bureaucrats and their relatives, hence the investigation should cover beneficiaries of PAP and PTC tenements as well.