Indian Express 17.11.2009
FSI for MHADA homes set to go up
As many as 17,000 low-income group families in the city and Pimpri-Chinchwad staying in Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA) apartments have a reason to cheer as the state government is in the process of increasing the Floor Space Index (FSI) for the apartments - from 1 to 2.5.
Now, MHADA residents of age-old buildings can get more spacious rooms designed as per their choice. The state has already implemented its plan in Mumbai and Nagpur. For Pune, the Urban Development Department has cleared the plan which now awaits chief minister’s approval. The plan is aimed at increasing more low-cost housing in the city at subsidised rate. Deputy director of town planning Sadhana Naik said, “The plan submitted to the chief minister is most likely to be cleared soon and MHADA colonies in Pune will get the benefit of 2.5 FSI,” she said.
Pune MHADA chief Ankush Kakade said,
“Even as the owner stands to be benefited, the developer of these colonies will have to get back to MHADA with a new construction plan using 2.5 FSI and the costs involved,” said a MHADA official.
“More tenements and a lot of re-development of houses built in the 1960s is on the cards. The present two-storeyed houses may even rise up to 10-12 storeyes.”
The 2.5 FSI will be applicable only in the city areas. Pune city has 24 colonies spread across 11.70 lakh sq mts with 11,600 tenements and 5,309 tenements in three colonies spread across 5.04 lakh sq mts in the Pimpri-Chinchwad area. In all, MHADA has 171 hectares of land in the city and 510 hectares in the district. At present, MHADA housing extends from 215 sq ft homes to 861 sq ft homes.
