Bombay High Court eases NOC requirement

The Bombay High Court has instructed the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada) not to require an NOC from any prior developer or architect when the housing society of a seven-story building in Kherwadi, Bandra (East), which collapsed 25 years ago, selects a new developer for its reconstruction.

"This is an unfortunate matter dating back to 1998 when the Govinda Tower building collapsed, resulting in the loss of 33 lives. There appears to have been no progress since then, and this petition was filed in 2001," stated Justices Gautam Patel and Kamal Khata on August 25.