103 MLAs from Maharashtra to get Rs1 lakh every month

The decision to vacate the three existing towers of the Manorma hostel, Nariman Point, was taken in a meeting held at the Vidhan Bhavan on Tuesday

Out of 323 legislators living in the dilapidated Manora MLA hostel, Nariman Point, 103 will get Rs1 lakh every month to pay for an alternative accommodation, as the flats they currently occupy at the hostel will have to be vacated in the next three weeks. The state has decided to disconnect water and electricity supply to the hostel from February 1.

The state will bear the annual burden of Rs25 crore towards the compensatory rent for the next four years until the new towers at Manora are constructed. (HT File)

“We have 220 flats available at Akashwani hostel at Nariman Point and Annex MLA hostel at Colaba. But the requirement is of 646 flats for 323 legislators. While 220 MLAs will get one flat each and Rs50,000 compensatory rent a month, 103 will get Rs1 lakh a month. The MLAs occupying two flats will have to vacate one flat to make way for others,” said a Mantralaya official.

The decision to vacate the three existing towers of the hostel was taken in a meeting held at the Vidhan Bhavan on Tuesday. The MLAs occupying 330 flats will be given money to find new accommodations after they refused to shift to the alternative flats provided by the government in Ghatkopar. The MLAs refused to relocate into the flats constructed by the Public Works Department (PWD) saying the location was ‘inconvenient’. Also, the government’s bid to rent flats in private buildings in south Mumbai failed.

The state will bear the annual burden of Rs25 crore towards the compensatory rent for the next four years until the new towers at Manora are constructed. The government has planned two towers of 50-storey each with more than 650 flats of 600 and 400 sq ft. The National Buildings Construction Corporation Pvt Ltd (NBCC) has been appointed to build these towers.

“It will take at least six months to secure permission from the civic body and central agencies because the area falls under Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ) norms. The project will take another three years for the completion,” the official said.