MHADA draw: 900 mill workers to get homes in a month

“The letters for about 900 more mill workers are ready. Most are in the process of payment of stamp duty and registration,while some are in the process of completing the formalities before possession. We will allot them to the mill workers as soon as the procedure is over,” said a MHADA official who did not wish to be named.

A total of 6,925 former mill workers or their descendants won houses in the draw held for nearly 1.5 lakh retrenched workers coveting houses in Mumbai. The lottery winners were being offered 225 sq ft houses on the erstwhile mill complexes located in prime areas in the island city at a heavily subsidised cost of Rs 7.5 lakh each.

“MHADA’s way of giving possession is unfair and long-drawn. Even after making full payment,workers have had to wait for long,making several visits to the MHADA office to follow up. They are first asked to pay the stamp duty,registration and an advance of the maintenance charges for a year,which comes to a lot,” said Kishor Deshpande,a mill workers’ union leader.

The process of granting possession started in January when Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan handed over the keys to 24 workers.

The housing board has scrutinised the documents of about 4,000 lottery winners as of now. Several allotments have been held up as the kin of the workers are struggling to produce a succession certificate.