Navi Mumbai: Slow Development Pace Hampers NAINA Project, Raises Concerns Over Smart City Initiative

Over the span of 11 years, the Navi Mumbai Airport Influence Notified Area (NAINA), initially designed to be 1.2 times larger than Navi Mumbai itself, has seen only 79 projects obtaining occupational certificates (OC). This sluggish pace of development has resulted in diminishing interest from both developers and villagers, leading to a dampened enthusiasm for the envisioned smart city initiative.

Following the state government's decision to exclude 80 out of the 174 villages initially designated under NAINA, the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO), serving as the Special Planning Authority (SPA) for NAINA, is now tasked with developing only 94 villages. The area earmarked for development has significantly decreased since the inception of NAINA, shrinking from 270 villages to the current 94 villages. Moreover, the state government previously transferred 96 villages from NAINA to MSRDC for the development of a smart city along the Mumbai-Pune expressway.

"The slow pace of development has caused significant revenue losses to the state government," claims the NAINA Builders Welfare Association (NBWA), a developers' body. "Most of the occupational certificates (OC) awarded were in Gaothan areas where the local bodies were already granting OCs as per existing laws," explained Prakash Baviskar, president of NAINA Builders Welfare Association (NBWA) and general secretary of Marathi Bandhkam Vyavsayik Association (MBVA).

Of the 79 projects that received occupational certificates (OC), approximately 55 were residential projects, 9 were rental housing projects, and the remaining included commercial developments, fire brigade facilities, retail chains, and petrol pumps.

"We have consistently raised concerns about the slow pace of infrastructure development in NAINA. Accelerated infrastructure development not only facilitates the availability of affordable housing around Panvel but also contributes significantly to revenue generation for the state government," stated Baviskar.

After repeated demands from developers, last year, CIDCO invited multiple tenders worth Rs 1200 crores for basic infrastructures like roads, drainage, and solid waste management system among others in NAINA. As per the tender, CIDCO will develop roads, and solid waste drains along with footpaths across 23 villages of NAINA.

Following the implementation of NAINA, restrictions such as building height limitations imposed due to the proximity of the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) nearly halted the area's development, resulting in idle lands. NAINA is a participatory land pooling scheme where villagers will get 40 percent of the developed land of the total land they will surrender to develop NAINA city in the Raigad district. The remaining 60 percent land will be kept by CIDCO for infrastructure and amenities developments. At present, CIDCO is executing a pilot project, consisting of 23 villages in the Raigad district. 

In addition, the scheme was not accepted by villagers and they demanded more developed land than what they were being offered. This also delayed the overall development of the area.