Maharashtra announces TDR boost for civic amenities

MUMBAI: In a major move to ensure that land for public amenities is easily obtained, the Maharashtra government has decided that it would double the incentive in the form of Transferable Development Rights (TDR) if the land has to be acquired for public amenities.

Maharashtra chief minister Devendra Fadnavis announced this new policy in the state Assembly on Wednesday. "We have seen that it is becoming increasingly difficult for municipal corporations to get land for public amenities and this leads to Development Plan being incomplete. So, we are bringing this new policy as an incentive for people to give us land," said Fadnavis.

However, Fadnavis said the state will not allow the extra TDR facility to be abused by builders and plot owners. In this regard, TDR will be linked to the Ready Reckoner Rate to stop windfall gains.

Despite CM's assertion to stop abuse, the news would be welcomed by the developers' lobby . Under the earlier policy, a plot owner would have got only 100 sq ft of land in return for giving up the same amount of land to a civic body . However, under the new policy , he will get 200 sq ft.

Meanwhile, the CM also said that the state was considering the possibility of aligning the Metro line 3 along the proposed coastal road and talks were on with the Netherlands government. "We have also decided to have a separate corridor for Bus Rapid Transport System on the coastal road," Fadnavis said.