Maharashtra amends Mhada Act to clear redevelopment of 13000 dilapidated Mumbai buildings

The Maharashtra State Legislature on Friday amended the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development (Mhada) Act to legally clear the way for the redevelopment of over 13,000 dilapidated buildings across Mumbai. The decision follows years of hazardous building collapses in city localities such as Dongri and Fort, and aims to grant Mhada the explicit authority to take over reconstruction when landlords fail to act.

The reconstruction of these buildings will be carried out through the Mumbai Building Repairs and Reconstruction Board. The legislative move resolves legal ambiguities that had previously stalled safety and rebuilding efforts in the city.

The amendment was introduced to address a legal conflict that led the Bombay High Court to stay the implementation of Section 79A of the Mhada Act. Sections 79A and 79B were originally inserted into the Act in 2020 following a series of fatal incidents, including the Husaini Building collapse in 2017, the Dongri building collapse in 2019, and the Fort building crash in 2020.

These provisions gave Mhada the power to take over dangerous buildings if landlords failed to redevelop them, and allowed tenants to undertake redevelopment themselves with majority consent. However, landlords challenged this in the High Court, which stayed around 935 notices issued by Mhada under Section 79A, ruling that the authority may have acted without proper legal backing.

With the new amendment, the legislature has provided Mhada with the explicit legal authority to redevelop old, dilapidated buildings for which it collects cess. Officials state the amendment will help Mhada secure a favorable verdict in an ongoing case before the Supreme Court, which is scheduled for a hearing on July 20.

The policy change is expected to benefit thousands of tenants living in ancient structures where redevelopment has been stalled for decades due to landlord-tenant disputes. According to Mhada data, 815 people died in dilapidated building collapses in Mumbai between the 1970s and 2018. More recently, between January 2021 and August 2025, the city recorded 345 full or partial building collapses, resulting in eight deaths and 28 injuries.

Shiv Sena (UBT) MLC Anil Parab supported the amendment, noting it would make matters easier when the case is heard in the Supreme Court. Parab congratulated the government for taking prompt action during the legislative session after he raised the issue, noting that the amendment clarifies Mhada's powers which were previously deemed arbitrary.