Mahalaxmi Dhobi Ghat to soon see change in scenery

A remnant of Mumbai's socio-economic past, the Mahalaxmi Dhobi Ghat is going to soon see a change in scenery. Slums neighboring the laundromat will give way to sprawling luxury apartments, thanks to a redevelopment plan. This slum rehabilitation scheme took 10 years to fructify.

This dhobi ghat is also home to around 8,000 slum dwellers. And they have voted in favour of surrendering their tenements to Omkar Developers for a redevelopment project.

This dhobi ghat is over a hundred years old. It is a heritage site covering 10 acres and shares its boundary with the Mahalaxmi suburban train station in South Bombay. Alongside this laundromat is a slum that spans 7 acres, and houses around 1,500 families. According to Omkar Developers, 1,118 families are eligible for rehabilitation under the Slum Rehabilitation Scheme. According to the scheme, each family is to get a 269 square feet apartment, and Omkar estimates that around 1,400 apartments will be constructed to house the 8,000-odd residents of the area.

Babulal Varma, MD, Omkar Developers, says: "Probably 23 storey building for the rehabilitation part and over 1 million square feet we'll get for free housing for the open market we can sell. So we will go luxury product. Already, we are developing a very luxury project in Worli, Omkar 1973."

Thanks to the higher floor space index it is set to receive under the slum rehabilitation policy, Omkar will construct and sell upwards of 1 million square feet of space in the open market as part of the redevelopment plan. Mahalaxmi is an upscale residential market and prices here are currently shooting over Rs 40,000 a square foot. The company hopes that work can begin on the rehabilitation leg of the project within the next four to five months. It is looking to kick off the luxury development project over the next six to eight months.

It's understandable if some of you are humming a Bob Dylan song right now, because the times they are changing. It has taken ten years, but finally an offer has been accepted and another step has been taken towards changing this city's landscape for the better.