For Golf Course at Mulund, BMC issues permission to PGTI for a feasibility study
Civic officials said that on November 26, the PGTI administration had written to the BMC, seeking permission to carry out a feasibility study on the plot.
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation on Wednesday issued permission to the Professional Golf Tour of India (PGTI)–the main controlling body of professional golf in India—to carry out a feasibility study to construct a golf course in the existing site of Mulund dumping ground.
“For now, we have given permission to PGTI to carry out a feasibility study only, whether it is possible to transform the plot into a golf course. In our permission letter, we have also mentioned that the survey shouldn’t affect the ongoing bio-mining work underway at the plot,” an official said.
Civic officials said that on November 26, the PGTI administration had written to the BMC, seeking permission to carry out a feasibility study on the plot.
Later, in the permission letter that was issued on Wednesday, civic authorities maintained that the study will comprise geotechnical surveys and will be carried out by PGTI at their own expense.
The Mulund dumpsite is spread across 60 acres and has remained operational from 1968 till 2018 when the court ordered the civic body to scientifically close it down. According to the data furnished by the authorities, in the past seven years, the civic body has been able to remove nearly 50 lakh MT or 71 per cent of the total 70 lakh MT solid waste present in the dumpsite. Further, the data also shows that till date the BMC has been able to reclaim 25 acres of land out of the total 60-acre land parcel.
The overall cost for cleaning the Mulund landfill stood at Rs 598 crore, while the cost of removing every single ton of waste stood at Rs 798.
Mihir Kotecha, BJP legislator from Mulund, welcomed BMC’s decision and said, “This is extremely important and delightful news for the people of Mulund. For many years, citizens of Mulund East had to endure the foul smell from the garbage dumping ground. In 2018, this dumping ground was shut down. Last year, I had demanded that after the complete removal of the waste, the available 64-acre land should be used by the BMC to develop a golf course,” Kotecha said.
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Meanwhile, earlier in November, the BMC had accepted a proposal to lease out 15-acre portion of the Mulund site to the Navbharat Mega Developers Private Limited (NMDPL)–the special purpose vehicle that is executing the Dharavi Redevelopment Project (DRP). According to the government records, Adani Properties Private Limited (APPL) holds 80% of the share in NMDPL and the remaining 20% is with the state government’s Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA).
The BMC had agreed to lease out the Mulund dumpsite at an annual rent of Rs 18.35 crore for a period of five years. Overall, the BMC intends to earn Rs 91.78 crore by leasing out the 15-acre portion of the dumpsite.
“The agreement for leasing out the land is yet to be finalised. We wrote to NMDPL and asked them to deposit a bank guarantee amount with us. Also, we will be leasing out the land for only a period of five years. So, it won’t create any hindrance in the process of transforming the land into a golf course, if at all that happens,” the official said.
The NMDPL has sought the dumpsite land for setting up a casting yard to facilitate construction in the salt pan lands which is easily accessible via the Eastern Express Highway (EEH).
Mulund dumping ground
Period of operation: 1968 to 2018
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Solid waste present at the site when it was shut: 70 MT
Solid waste removed from the site till date: 50 MT
Pratip Acharya is a seasoned journalist based in Mumbai reporting for The Indian Express. With a career spanning over a decade, his work demonstrates strong Expertise and Authority in critical urban issues, civic affairs, and electoral politics across Eastern and Western India.
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Started at The Times of India in Kolkata (2014).
Relocated to Mumbai (2016) and worked with The Free Press Journal and Hindustan Times before joining The Indian Express.
Pratip Acharya's diverse experience across major publications, coupled with his specialized focus on the intricate details of urban governance and a track record of covering major electoral and health crises, establishes him as a trusted and authoritative source for news from India's critical metropolitan centres. ... Read More
