Master plan, special dept to ease opening up of city’s port lands

MbPT mulls giving land to private players on long-term leases to raise funds

More than a year after an ambitious blueprint was inked to open up the city’s port lands, the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) has now decided to form a detailed master plan for the project. The port trust plans to float global tenders in the next 10 days to appoint a consultant who will create the master plan and help the port execute it. If the port trust is to be believed, the detailed ‘Economic and Financial Project Report’ will be ready within six months.

However, in what could be a blow to the city’s aspirations of obtaining large chunks of open spaces and public amenities, the MbPT has now said it is mulling giving away land chunks to private players on long-term leases in order to raise funds. This would mean that private players will carry out construction on the plot and use them in ways which are lucrative for them, not necessarily what the city wants.

The MbPT has now proposed to form a separate new department called the portland development, which will spearhead these efforts. In addition, it has also proposed that a high-level coordination committee, headed by the shipping secretary and having senior members of the bureaucracy such as the chief secretary as co-chairman, to take all decisions regarding the port trust.

“We are planning to employ the CIDCO model of monetizing land, where we will give out our land parcels on 60-year leases. This way, we will be able to raise funds for the overhaul. We, already, have 40-50 plots which are vacant. If I get approval [from the ministry], we can start leasing them out,” said Sanjay Bhatia, chairperson, MbPT, while speaking at the ‘Mumbai Portlands-From Vision to Action’, an event conducted by Apli Mumbai and Indian Merchants Chamber to promote consultations among stakeholders. Such a plan, however, goes against the often-repeated statements by Union shipping minister Nitin Gadkari, who said that not a single inch of land would be given away to builders.

However, leasing out land to private players would imply allowing private players to go ahead and develop it. Bhatia said the appointment of a consultant would give a fillip to the port’s plans.

After creating the blueprint in about six months, the port hopes to have a window of two to four years to finish the overhaul of the port lands.