BMC shows ‘discrepancy’ in computing Mahalaxmi Racecourse plot for theme park

BMC issued a notification by the chief engineer of its development department, which failed to specify the correct area for the proposed theme park plot

Mumbai: A recent notification issued by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on the proposed modifications to the Mahalaxmi Racecourse allegedly has discrepancies and inaccuracies in computing the 120 acres of land that the civic body has taken over to construct a central theme park.

Mumbai, India. Jan 27,2024 - Maharashtra government and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) proposed a theme park at the racecourse, which is spread over 120 acres in South Mumbai. Jan 27,2024 (Photo by Raju Shinde/HT Photo)

On Wednesday, the BMC issued a notification, published by the chief engineer of its development plan department, which failed to specify the correct area for the proposed theme park plot, according to activists fighting to preserve open spaces in the city.

The notification allegedly shows a bifurcation of the 120-acre racecourse plot into three categories. While Schedule A mentions the area of the existing racecourse track as 29.4 acres, Schedule B has 77 acres, and Schedule C has 1.96 acres, which adds up to 108.36 acres—11.76 acres short of the 120.12 acres the civic body is supposed to take over.

“Our primary concern lies with the inaccuracies in Schedule A of the said notification, which fails to provide the correct area for plot C,” said Advocate Godfrey Pimenta from Watchdog Foundation, an NGO. “The notification lists the area of plot C as 1.96 acres, which does not tally with the total area calculation for plots A, B, and C, aggregating to 120.12 acres. There appears to be a shortfall of 11.76 acres of Plot C, which raises serious concerns about the accuracy of the information presented.”

Pimenta added that there is a “significant discrepancy” between the plan previously disclosed by BMC and the plot areas stated in Schedule A of the notification. “For example, Schedule A mentions the area of the existing race course track as 34.12 acres, whereas the earlier plan disclosed by BMC shows the area as 39.90 acres. As such, there is a substantial difference of 5.78 acres,” he said.

The activist demanded that the BMC immediately publish a corrigendum to the notification dated August 21. Sunil Rathod, chief engineer of the development plan department, remained unavailable for comment.

The BMC notification was issued because a new regulation is set to be incorporated into the Development Control and Promotion Regulations (DCPR) 2034. The proposed regulation 13(10), introduced by the BMC, will specifically apply only to the Mahalaxmi Racecourse and will not extend to other clubs, gymkhanas or plots reserved for such purposes within the BMC’s jurisdiction. The civic body has given a one-month window for submitting suggestions and objections to this modification in DCPR 2034.