Maharashtra approves using 256 acres of salt pans to rehouse Dharavi residents

The move was opposed by Dharavi residents who are insisting on in-situ rehabilitation. Environmental activists termed it “an ecologically disastrous decision”

Mumbai: The Maharashtra government on Monday approved the acquisition of 255.9 acres of ecologically fragile salt-pan land from the Centre on lease to house people who were ineligible to get homes under the Adani Group-led Dharavi Redevelopment Project.

Mumbai, India - September 30, 2024: Saltpan land at mulund ,in mumbai,in Mumbai, India, on, Monday, September 30, 2024. ( Praful ÊGangurde /HT Photo )

The Centre had approved the transfer on September 2 after the Maharashtra government requested it to allocate three salt-pan land parcels in Kanjurmarg, Bhandup and Mulund on lease for the redevelopment project. The move was opposed by Dharavi residents who are insisting on an in-situ rehabilitation, along with environmental activists who termed it “an ecologically disastrous decision”. Salt pans, which are low-lying tracts of land parcels, act as a sponge to absorb rain and prevent excessive flooding in Mumbai.

The state government plans to use the acquired salt-pan land to develop rental, low-cost, and affordable housing for residents who were ineligible to get redeveloped homes in Dharavi. Residents whose tenements were constructed before January 1, 2000, and those living on the ground floor were eligible for homes within Dharavi, while others will be accommodated in rental housing projects in other areas of the city.

On September 18, Valsa Nair Singh, the additional chief secretary of the state housing department, wrote to the Union Ministry of Commerce and Industry requesting it “to take necessary steps to facilitate [the] early transfer of 255.9 acres of salt pan land” for utilisation in the Dharavi Redevelopment Project. “The letter was written following the directives of chief minister Eknath Shinde,” said an official working for the state government.

Environmental activists slammed the decision, warning that it could lead to a deluge similar to the one on July 26, 2005, when a cloudburst led to 944mm of rainfall in 24 hours, claiming over a thousand lives. “The very areas that protect Mumbai from drowning will be carpeted with cement-concrete,” said environmentalist Rishi Aggarwal. “All of us are aware what happened to Mumbai during the 2005 deluge after the area between Bandra and Kurla were reclaimed to make it into a central business district. A repeat of this will be inevitable going ahead as Mumbai will become less climate resistant and more flood-prone.”

The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (SP) also opposed the decision and criticised the state government.

“This proves that what Devendra Fadnavis said about the government’s ability to take back the Dharavi redevelopment project from Adani Reality was a farce,” said Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe. “The state and the central government all are working for Gautam Adani. We strongly oppose the decision and will not allow Mumbai, Maharashtra and the country to be handed over to the rich.”

NCP (SP) spokesperson Mahesh Tapase said, “We will also not allow this to happen. We want the people of Dharavi to be rehabilitated in Dharavi itself. The government should also clarify how much land they are willing to give for the project.”

The third party in the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi, the Shiv Sena (UBT) did not comment on the decision. Before the party split in 2022, the undivided Shiv Sena and BJP government had approved a proposal to earmark 321 acres of salt-pan land in Mumbai to be used for affordable housing. This was part of the Development Control and Promotion Regulations 2034 (DCPR 2034), the city’s master development plan.

Maharashtra has nearly 13,000 acres of salt-pan land, with 5,379 acres in Mumbai, out of which 1,781 acres can be developed as per the DCPR 2034. Across Maharashtra, offices and residential buildings exist on 88.365 acres of salt-pan land, according to documents accessed by HT.

Out of this, 44.563 acres are under dispute and 5.822 acres are encroached.

In Mumbai, there are buildings in Wadala, Bhandup, Nahur, Trombay, Malwani and Goregaon on salt pans, spread over 6.216 acres. Salt pans in Wadala, Nahur, Trombay and Mulund, across 10.969 acres, have roads built on them. There are smaller land parcels in the city that are under dispute and encroachment.