'No' Parking

Parking woes in Mumbai on the rise, as the government scraps its notification to provide additional FSI policy. Shriyal Sethumadhavan reports... Arise in vehicle population and the need for parking in the city had led to the government’s notification to provide additional Floor Space Index (FSI) for public parking in Mumbai one-and-a-half years ago. However, the Maharashtra government recently decided on bringing this policy to a screeching halt. According to the policy, development control regulations were amended to permit private participation in public parking. A private party could avail up to 50 per cent of the built-up area of the public parking space constructed on the plot. The parking facility, once created, had to be handed over free-of-cost to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC). In view of public parking, there was scope of availing 26,700 sq m FSI by giving 55,400 sq m for parking, thereby making the total built-up area on the same plot to more than 90,000 sq m. “In principal to the parking problem that the city is facing, this was an excellent policy framed to resolve the problem,” expresses Anand Gupta, Treasurer, Builders Association of India. “The scheme development rule provided was definitely at no cost to the government, or the corporation and it offered a free opportunity to accommodate the parking problems of all the developing areas.” Also, as Shailesh Sanghvi, Director, Sanghvi Group, and Secretary, MCHI (Mira Road - Virar Unit), opines, “There are so many private places and big landmarks in the city, but we do not have sufficient parking facilities. A builder/developer considers projects located close to these landmarks. Hence, introducing this policy was a good step by the government.” The policy was in the right spirit - to provide parking spaces. Initially, more than 20,000 parking lots alone were sanctioned in the mill land area of the Lower Parel-Worli belt. However, this led to severe congestion. “In some areas, a lot of parking space is allotted, mainly Lower Parel and Worli. This is also because many projects have been coming up there,” informs Sanghvi. “So, there should have been a bifurcation, that in this area we will allow for 5,000 cars. Whoever starts the project first will get it.” As cited by Gupta, one of the reasons given by the government for holding the scheme back was that it was being misused by developers/builders. He adds, “The scheme has been misused by some of the developers in collision with the BMC officers and state government officers. The scheme is eventually recommended by the BMC and approved by the committee which is headed by the chief secretary. So now, if the whole system is wrong, then who is to blame and where does one stop.” The policy was introduced during former Chief Minister Ashok Chavan’s reign. In Sanghvi’s view, “The scheme should not be scrapped, but there should be some modifications introduced.” With a similar stance, Gupta says, “It is a total government failure, to hide which, they have scrapped the scheme. Instead of giving the benefit to the general public and pay attention to solving the parking problem, we have accepted the other fashion of just scrapping it, which is truly disappointing.” He further informs that the Builders Association of India plans to make an appeal to the chief minister, stating, “Somehow, by wrong interpretation of the system, you have taken a wrong decision. Please correct with due precautions.”