MMRDA plans flurry of skyscrapers with higher FSI

Country's premier business district, the Bandra Kurla Complex in Mumbai, is all set to rise higher and is going to witness more construction dotting skyscrapers with increased FSI, said official sources, claiming that MMRDA, which is the town planning agency for the commercial district, has approached the Maharashtra government for permitting higher floor space index (FSI) for commercial and residential developments in the business district. In fact, FSI is a development tool that defines the extent of construction permissible on a plot. It is the ratio of the built-up area to the total plot area and that in order to reposition BKC as a commercial-cum-residential district and enhance revenue collections from the region, the MMRDA has sought the state government's go-ahead to sanction developments on the basis of gross plot area or global FSI. Currently, areas under roads and other public amenities deducted while computing the FSI permissible for a plot in the region. Making a case for higher FSI, the agency has argued that the Mumbai International Airport area development has been modeled on the basis of global FSI. It has further argued that the proposed revamp of the Wadala Truck Terminus, where a new business district is being planned by the MMRDA, has also been approved on a global FSI basis. According to senior officials, the proposal, if approved by the government, would enhance the permissible buildable area in BKC nearly three times and can earn an additional ₹1.69 lakh crore from additional premiums due to the FSI hike.