Mumbai: Port committee proposes to open up 750 acres in 3 phases

The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) has proposed a phasewise plan to open up land by taking a number of steps, including curtailing its operations.

The ambitious overhaul of the city’s port land and Mumbai Port Land Development Committee’s (MPLDC) blueprint have now been strengthened by a solid assurance that has been missing so far.

The Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) has proposed a phasewise plan to open up land by taking a number of steps, including curtailing its operations.

The MbPT has submitted a detailed three-phase proposal to the MPLDC, which has included it in the report. According to this proposal, the MbPT has committed

to opening up, in a timebound manner, more than 750 acres of land. It has proposed to do this by curtailing operations as well as taking back possession of land from various agencies.

Apart from this, the MPLDC has also suggested the Union shipping minister head the proposed autonomous agency, which it wants to be an all-powerful authority working for the development of the port lands. Titled ‘Mumbai Port Land Development

Authority’ (MPLDA), this body will be chaired by the shipping minister and will have the shipping secretary as a member, the MPLDC has proposed.

The two are very significant proposals for a variety of reasons.

Traditionally, the MbPT has been opposed to opening up its land for non-port related activities. However, after shipping minister Nitin Gadkari announced his plan, the MbPT

began giving in. While the port trust had sounded optimistic about the proposed development of its lands for the city’s benefits, it had never committed to actually ensuring that land was opened up.

“With these three phases, we have a clearly identified roadmap of just how and which plots will be opened up and in how much time,” said a source in the MbPT.

Sources also said the roadmap was feasible in implementation.

“It consists of a lot of plots where the occupiers have themselves offered to surrender or where the leases have expired. It won’t be difficult to execute,” said the official.

Sources said that the proposal to develop the MPLDA is also likely to be a game-changer as far as the implementation of the blueprint is concerned. “Having the minister chairing it will make it all the more powerful an authority,” said a MPLDC source.