Mumbai After talking about a single planning authority for Mumbai for the last five years, the idea may soon see the light of the day as state tourism and environment minister Aaditya Thackeray said on Thursday that it could be launched within this year.
The government plans to launch it under the mayor of the city, who will have the last word over every implementing authority such as the Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA).
Thackeray, who is also the guardian minister of Mumbai suburban, said on Thursday that the city will get a singular planning authority this year with an “empowered mayor” and deliberations during the process are underway. However, he clarified that the implementation of projects will remain with multiple agencies including MMRDA.
Thackeray was speaking at an international conference on Climate Crisis 2.0 – Mobilizing Finance for Coastal Cities, jointly organised by Mumbai First, the government of Maharashtra, European Union and the Consulate of Netherlands.
A senior bureaucrat, who did not wish to be named, said, “There has to be a single planning authority. All plans must merge. Everyone has different priorities. For example, MMRDA may prioritise transport, MHADA may prioritise housing, but Mumbai has its priority that must be put above all else.”
In its budget 2021, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) stated that it has written to the state government requesting that it be made the single planning authority for Mumbai, to make up for the loss of revenue. However, the idea to have a single planning authority for the city has been deliberated for about five years. It was on the “wish-list” for urban planners and bureaucrats involved in drafting the development plan of Mumbai in 2016-17, for streamlining co-ordination and infrastructure planning in Mumbai.
Presently, apart from the civic body, there are multiple planning authorities in Mumbai, such as MMRDA, MHADA, Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA), Maharashtra Industrial Development Corporation (MIDC), Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), Mumbai Port Trust (MBPT). While these carry out the planning and implementation of projects in their jurisdiction, BMC provides amenities such as roads, water and sewage.
DM Sukthankar, the former BMC commissioner, said, “Having multiple planning agencies for Mumbai was an aberration, and was intended for a short period of time. A single planning authority should be a priority for a city like Mumbai. If all planning is done by one government authority, the concept of coordination, permissions to carry out work or resolve civic issues will not arise.”
Thackeray said, “To repair one footpath or one single road in Mumbai, there are 42 utilities, and coordination is required for each one, and 16 agencies have to be on board for planning and permissions. This needs to be managed more efficiently.”
Speaking at the conference, Thackeray said, “Climate action is not only for 2040, or 2070, it is for today. One of the ways to move further for Mumbai is to create a single planning authority. In Mumbai, where we have multiple planning agencies and 42 utilities. We are actively working towards a single planning agency, and an empowered mayor to head it. That is very crucial, that such a body is headed by an elected representative, rather than a CEO. Hopefully, this will happen within the year, as process and deliberations are on.”
“Now that the state and BMC are aligned, we have found it easier to meet timelines related to infrastructure projects,” Thackeray said, adding that the government has made it a point to have weekly meetings of all agencies working in Mumbai, on Wednesday, to coordinate and interact. This has brought down planning and coordination time from six to seven months to close to two months, according to Thackeray.
Taking a dig at BJP, Thackeray said, “The political environment is polluted now and we are debating whether what was done in history is right or wrong, and who was right or wrong. The real issues are unemployment, creating jobs, climate change and water. In Maharashtra, we have opened debate on these issues and active deliberations at the policy level are on.”