MUMBAI: BMC’s proposal to lease its 6.17-acre Century Mill land in Lower Parel to Peddar Realty Ltd for 30 years, with an option to extend the lease by another 30 years, was approved by the civic improvements committee on Friday.The proposal drew opposition from Shiv Sena (UBT) and Congress, who said BMC was getting a raw deal on land it had reclaimed after prolonged litigation. They said the valuable parcel should have been used for a public amenity.Sena (UBT) corporator Vishakha Raut said the BMC should have at least ensured that the mill workers’ families got larger homes under the proposal. Sena (UBT) corporator Sachin Padwal asked why BMC had not made greater efforts to attract more bidders and whether the terms and conditions had been altered to favour a particular developer.After the proposal was cleared, Padwal and fellow corporator Vitthal Lokre tore up copies of the proposal in protest.Improvements committee chairperson Sandhya Doshi said efforts would be made to give mill workers’ families, who are Marathi people, homes at the same location.The committee also approved a proposal to delete the existing reservation for a sports complex/stadium on a portion of a plot in Mulund East and replace it with a petrol pump.The committee also approved a proposal to club nearly 9,000 sq m of BMC land in Lower Parel with an SRA scheme. In the arrangement, BMC will receive 189 rehabilitation flats and a 25% land premium.
