The Maharashtra Government has decided to use the salt pan lands across Mumbai and its metropolitan region for housing projects, slum rehabilitation and infrastructure development.

According to a state Revenue Department official, the government has appointed a high-level committee headed by Chief Secretary to monitor the preparation of a draft policy, which will enable the government to use these vast stretches of salt pan land.

The state has nearly 13,000 acres of salt pan land, with 5,000 acres in Mumbai, followed by around 2,000 acres in Vasai and 2,000 acres in Palghar district.

“The committee is on a lookout for such salt pan lands that have been encroached by slums and the lease of which has expired. Once the committee gets up-to-date information of the total salt pan land, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) will remove the encroachment and prepare a micro-plan, which can be merged with the development plan,” the official said.

The city needs land for social and economic development and therefore, while preparing the draft, the committee has been asked to make sure that while we develop the land, economy and environment is not disturbed, he said.

The MMRDA will prepare the policy to use salt pan land with collective consent of Urban Development, Housing, Environment and Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) authorities, the official said, adding that the committee will also consider the extent to which such land can be used for development considering the Development Control (DC) rules and Coastal Regulatory Zone (CRZ) guidelines.

“The committee has to give suggestions if there is a need to make an amendment in Maharashtra Town Planning Act to ensure MMRDA can use its development plan on the land that is reserved for some purpose or if it is under a no-development zone. The salt pan land will also be used for building playgrounds, gardens and public utilities,” the official said.

The panel has to consider the possibility to implement the slum rehabilitation scheme on state-owned, but encroached salt pan land. If the land is owned by the Centre and is encroached upon, it could be considered for SRA scheme, the official said.

The committee has also been instructed to ask the Commissioner of Saltpan Department for additional land requirement for saltpan before preparing the final draft.

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