Maharashtra to protect all pre-2011 slum structures, survey in 3 months
Synopsis
Maharashtra has pledged full legal protection to every slum structure built before 1 January 2011 on government and forest land — a sweeping commitment covering Mumbai, its suburbs, and the Konkan coast. A biometric survey must be done in three months, and residents who cannot be regularised in place will be absorbed into SRA, MHADA, or CIDCO projects. The scale and the hard deadline make this one of the state's most ambitious informal-housing moves in years.
Key Takeaways
Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced on 9 July that all slum structures built before 1 January 2011 on government and forest land will receive full legal protection.
Residents will be rehabilitated through the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) , MHADA , or CIDCO housing schemes where in-situ regularisation is not possible.
A biometric and physical survey of all affected residents will be completed within three months .
A special committee under the Konkan Divisional Commissioner , including District Collectors of Mumbai and Mumbai Suburban districts, is overseeing the survey.
The policy covers structures on mangrove areas, forest lands, revenue plots, Nazul lands, and CIDCO -owned properties across Mumbai City , Mumbai Suburbs , and the Konkan region .
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis approved the policy at a cabinet meeting; implementation is already under way.
Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule on Thursday, 9 July announced in the Legislative Assembly that the state government will extend full legal protection to all slum structures built before 1 January 2011 on lands owned by the state government, forest department, and various central and state authorities. The declaration covers residents across Mumbai City, Mumbai Suburbs, and the Konkan region, and commits to rehabilitating every eligible household through existing housing agencies.
Scope of the Policy
The protection covers structures that have come up on a wide range of government-held parcels — including mangrove areas, forest lands, revenue plots, Nazul lands, and properties owned by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO). Because many of these locations fall under development plan reservations, eco-sensitive zones, or strict forest regulations, in-situ regularisation is not feasible for all sites. Where on-site legalisation is impossible, residents will instead be allotted housing under Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), CIDCO, or Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) projects.
Cabinet Approval and Implementation
Bawankule confirmed that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis cleared the policy at a cabinet meeting, and that implementation has begun 'on a war footing' across the state. A special committee has been constituted under the Konkan Divisional Commissioner, with the District Collectors of Mumbai and Mumbai Suburban districts as members. The committee has already begun preliminary survey work.
Biometric Survey Within Three Months
Responding to suggestions from public representatives in the House, the Minister stated that a comprehensive biometric and physical survey of all residents on the concerned lands will be completed within the next three months. The survey will cover the Mumbai suburban district and all other affected areas statewide. For sites where rehabilitation cannot happen in place, a master plan will be drafted to map out alternate accommodation options.
Government's Commitment to Residents
Bawankule was unequivocal on one point: not a single eligible resident who was living in these areas before 1 January 2011 will be rendered homeless. The government's stated position is that every such resident has a rightful claim to housing, and the SRA, MHADA, and CIDCO frameworks will collectively absorb those who cannot be regularised where they currently live. This comes amid longstanding tension in Maharashtra between urban expansion pressures and the rights of informal settlers on ecologically sensitive or government-owned land.
What Comes Next
The Konkan Divisional Commissioner-led committee is expected to submit its survey findings within the three-month window, after which a sector-by-sector master plan will be finalised. Housing advocates and urban planners will be watching whether the biometric survey — a tool used in earlier SRA drives with mixed results — delivers a clean, dispute-free enumeration this time. The scale of the exercise, spanning multiple districts and land categories, makes it one of the most ambitious slum-rehabilitation surveys Maharashtra has undertaken in recent years.
Point of View
Delayed timelines, and litigation. Promising that 'not a single eligible resident' will go homeless is a political commitment that the three-month survey window will struggle to honour at scale. If the master plan is not ready before the survey concludes, the gap between announcement and delivery could once again become the story.
NationPress
9 Jul 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
What does Maharashtra's pre-2011 slum protection policy cover?
The policy grants full legal protection to all slum structures built before 1 January 2011 on lands owned by the state government, forest department, and central or state authorities. Residents who cannot be regularised in place will be rehabilitated through SRA, MHADA, or CIDCO housing schemes.
Who announced the Maharashtra slum protection policy and when?
Maharashtra Revenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule announced the policy in the Legislative Assembly on 9 July. He confirmed that Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis had already approved it at a cabinet meeting and that implementation is under way.
What is the timeline for the slum survey in Maharashtra?
A biometric and physical survey of all residents on the affected lands is to be completed within three months. The survey is being conducted by a special committee under the Konkan Divisional Commissioner, with District Collectors of Mumbai and Mumbai Suburban districts as members.
Which areas and land types are covered under this policy?
The policy covers Mumbai City, Mumbai Suburbs, and the Konkan region. It applies to structures on mangrove areas, forest lands, revenue plots, Nazul lands, and CIDCO-owned properties — land categories where conventional regularisation is not possible due to environmental or regulatory constraints.
What happens to residents whose homes cannot be regularised on-site?
For locations where in-situ regularisation is not feasible, the government has said a comprehensive master plan will be drafted to accommodate residents in MHADA, CIDCO, or SRA housing projects. The government has committed that no eligible resident living there before 1 January 2011 will be left homeless.
