TOI : BEST seeks to put land to more commercial use : Aug 30, 2007
BEST seeks to put land to more commercial use
TIMES NEWS NETWORK
Mumbai: The BEST undertaking wants more of its land to be commercially
exploited, and not merely used to park buses or build passenger terminals.
The reason-the undertaking has been in the red for several years and now
sees this as the only way it can improve its economic viability.
The BEST runs over 3,000 buses every day ferrying 45 lakh commuters
across the city. For several decades, the transport arm incurred losses and
was subsidised by the electricity division. Last year, after the Maharashtra
Electricity Regulatory Commission (MERC) banned cross-subsidy, BEST hit upon
the idea of exploiting its land reserved for bus stations and depots.
It was in July 2006 that the government allowed BEST to commercially
exploit 30% of
the land reserved for a bus depot. So far, the undertaking has leased out
six of its plots for commercial exploitation for 30 years and raised around
345 crore.
In August last year, BEST again approached the urban development
department seeking 50% commercial use. General manager Uttam Khobragade said
BEST needed the money and as 50% of the FSI was unused, it made sense to
commercially exploit the plots. “On the ground, we will allow only 20% FSI
to be used so that there is no difficulty in parking the buses. Allowing
another 20% for commercial exploitation will help us get out of the red,”
he explained.
As BEST is subordinate to the BMC, it has approached the civic body to
consider its proposal. BEST has argued that merely allowing a 15-30%
exploitation meant that a large portion of the land remained unutilised.
LAND ON LEASE
Kurla-Rs 40 cr Oshiwara-Rs 224 cr Mahim-Rs 32 cr Dahisar-Rs 8.80 cr Yari
Road-Rs 26.86 cr Marol-Rs 13 cr
Publication:Times of India Mumbai; Date:Aug 30, 2007; Section:Times City;
Page Number:7
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