‘We will invite best firms to undertake project’

Ravindra Waikar, minister of state for housing said the mandate given by his party chief Uddhav Thackeray is to generate a huge stock of affordable houses for their goal of ‘Houses For All’.

Ravindra Waikar, minister of state for housing, has been the chairman of the BMC standing committee for four consecutive terms and has been was entrusted with the crucial housing portfolio by the Shiv Sena party. According to Waikar, the mandate given by his party chief Uddhav Thackeray is to generate a huge stock of affordable houses for their goal of ‘Houses For All’.

Will Mhada redevelop BDD chawls?

This decision is 100% confirmed. Mhada will be the nodal agency

Many residents have opposed Mhada saying its track record is not encouraging.

See Mhada will act as a nodal agency. We will float global tenders and plan to invite the best companies to undertake this prestigious project.

There are some resident associations that are demanding self-redevelopment.

Show me one place in Mumbai where the self –redevelopment scheme has succeeded. We are the landlords of this place and hence we have decided to undertake its redevelopment.

There are questions raised over the Sewri BDD chawl as it is on Mumbai Port Trust land (MbPT). Union shipping minister Nitin Gadkari recently said he was unsure whether they can be rehabilitated in the same place itself since the MbPT has no revamp policy.

They will get houses in Sewri itself. Both the central and state government have adopted a ‘housing for all” scheme and hence this is also the part of the scheme. Talks are being held with the MbPT, where we are working out where they could be given some sort of compensation as they are the landlords.