Committed to smooth transition for residents, say developers of Nargis Dutt Nagar slum project

Still in talks with locals, authorities over Nargis Dutt Nagar slum project, committed to smooth transition, say developers (Representational image)

A consortium of developers who are taking up the potentially-lucrative Nargis Dutt Nagar slum rehabilitation project in Bandra (West) said that they remain in talks with locals, and authorities such as local elected officials and the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) in order to ensure a smooth transition for locals. The slums, located off the approach ramps of the Bandra Worli Sea Link, may fetch the developers a topline of around Rs 10,000 crore, according to observers, due to the highly-sought-after location of the project.

Roshni Developers, an entity linked to Omkar Developers, is leading the rehabilitation component of the project, with the RC Group as the project partner, while listed developer Godrej Properties will manage the free-sale component of the project, expected to be nearly a million square feet, according to some observers.

Last week, representatives of developers, local elected officials, and administrators appointed by the SRA held a meeting with around 1,200 residents of the slum, in which officials and developers claimed that they have been assured "full cooperation" with regard to the future of the project. However, some residents said that they have been left in the dark about the rehabilitation process, and have expressed apprehensions that they may be forced to leave the area once the rehabilitation process starts.

According to the developers, it has identified an initial list of residents who are eligible for rehabilitation, and work is on to deem the eligibility of other residents at the slum.

"Out of 1,515, a total of 851 tenants were deemed to be eligible for rehabilitation after completing the necessary due scrutiny and compliances. Roshni Developers has taken the responsibility for facilitating the eligibility process of the remaining tenants to review their applications in adherence to the SRA rules and norms and the work in this direction has been underway," said a spokesperson for Roshni Developers, which is leading the rehabilitation component for the project.

The spokesperson added that it is following "all SRA norms" in the project, such as rent payments to eligible tenants and a regulatory corpus. That corpus is required for the upkeep of the rehabilitated building, including for amenities such as elevators, water, and common electricity connections.

In a statement to Moneycontrol, Godrej Properties said that its involvement will begin after the slums are cleared, but did not comment on the revenue potential of the project.

"We are pleased to be associated with the Nargis Dutt Nagar slum redevelopment project. Under this joint venture with Roshni Developers, the company's role will start once the slum structures are vacated by Roshni Developers. As the project is currently in its initial stages, we would not comment any further," said a company spokesperson.