Siddhivinayak Temple expansion: State waives ₹2.34-crore stamp duty on land acquisition

While approving the land acquisition on October 15, the government in its order had specifically stated that the stamp duty, registration charges and other incidental expenses would be paid from the temple trust’s available funds, and the state exchequer would not bear the financial burden. That decision has now been changed

MUMBAI: After approving the Shree Siddhivinayak Ganpati Mandir Trust’s ₹94.12-crore proposal to acquire the adjoining Ram Mansion Cooperative Housing Society in Prabhadevi to facilitate the expansion of one of the city’s most popular temples, the Maharashtra government, at its cabinet meeting on Wednesday, approved a waiver of the stamp duty payable on the transaction.

Siddhivinayak Temple expansion: State waives ₹2.34-crore stamp duty on land acquisition

While approving the land acquisition on October 15, the government in its order had specifically stated that the stamp duty, registration charges and other incidental expenses would be paid from the temple trust’s available funds, and the state exchequer would not bear the financial burden. That decision has now been changed.

“The waiver of stamp duty on the purchase of Ram Mansion Cooperative Housing Society, located adjacent to the Siddhivinayak Temple in Mumbai, by the Shree Siddhivinayak Ganpati Mandir Trust has been approved. The stamp duty amount waived is ₹2.32 crore ( ₹2,32,38,700),” stated a release issued by the Chief Minister’s Office.

Ram Mansion is a three-storey residential building situated on a 708-square-metre privately owned plot adjoining the temple. Its acquisition is part of the ₹100-crore expansion plan of the nearly 225-year-old temple, renowned for its distinctive Ganpati idol with a right-curving trunk.

The government approved the trust’s proposal to acquire 20 residential and commercial units in Ram Mansion in order to expand facilities for devotees and improve crowd management. Siddhivinayak currently faces space constraints due to the large number of devotees visiting it from across the country and abroad. During festivals and other periods of heavy footfall, the trust incurs substantial recurring expenditure on temporary structures and crowd-management arrangements.

The government had authorised the trust to purchase the residential units at ₹66,000 per square foot, calculated on the basis of the existing carpet area and an additional 40% carpet area as incentive. The commercial premises will be acquired at ₹1.11 lakh per square foot.

Apart from Ram Mansion, the temple trust is also in talks with the Siddhivinayak Cooperative Housing Society (CHS), located on land owned by the trust adjacent to the temple, for its acquisition. Together, the two plots measure around 1,800 square metres.