A company owned by Madhya Pradesh government sold a prime eight-acre plot in the heart of central Mumbai's Kalachowkie area in 2002 for Rs 1.75 crore, the price of a south Mumbaiflat.
Property experts say though the real estate market was not in an upswing in 2002, each acre could still have fetched around Rs 20 crore. So, the plot, the size of four football fields, would be worth at least Rs 160 crore.
The Provident Investment Company Ltd, an MP government undertaking which owned large parcels of land in Mumbai, said it called for tender and sold it to the 'highest bidder', Esque Finmark.
The transaction came to light recently when some tenants of the enclave, popularly known as Ambewadi, dug up information about the land after the new owner, Paras Porwal of Esque Finmark, pushed for redevelopment.
Residents said the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA) 'hurriedly' declared the 32,000sq/m area a slum, although they are legitimate chawl tenants. "We have rent receipts to prove we are tenants," a resident said, adding that they have written to the MP government asking if it had given a no-objection certificate for its sale.
MP chief secretary Avani Vaish told TOI, "This is the first time that I have heard of the case. The Provident Investment Company is under the finance department. You could check with principal secretary (finance) Gopal Singhal." Asked if he received a letter from the residents, Vaish said, "We get so many letters and applications, it's hard to recall."
MP principal secretary (finance) Gopal Singhal, too, drew a blank. "I am not aware of this deal. The company has an office in Mumbai. The general manager K D Menon must have all the details. The government doesn't have much to do with the firm except providing guidelines," said Singhal. He, too, couldn't recall receiving any letter from Ambewadi residents.
Menon said notice for the land sale was announced in two city newspapers. "The company decided to sell the land because it was not getting good returns," he said. The property was sold on an "as is where is" basis for the highest bid of Rs 1.75 crore.
Minutes of the company's board meeting (May 20-21, 2002) reveal a previous tender received a single bid for just Rs 9.11 lakh, which was rejected. The board then decided to invite fresh bids. Six bidders responded and the highest was Rs 1.75 crore.
Property experts say though the real estate market was not in an upswing in 2002, each acre could still have fetched around Rs 20 crore. So, the plot, the size of four football fields, would be worth at least Rs 160 crore.
The transaction came to light recently when some tenants of the enclave, popularly known as Ambewadi, dug up information about the land after the new owner, Paras Porwal of Esque Finmark, pushed for redevelopment.
Residents said the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA) 'hurriedly' declared the 32,000sq/m area a slum, although they are legitimate chawl tenants. "We have rent receipts to prove we are tenants," a resident said, adding that they have written to the MP government asking if it had given a no-objection certificate for its sale.
MP chief secretary Avani Vaish told TOI, "This is the first time that I have heard of the case. The Provident Investment Company is under the finance department. You could check with principal secretary (finance) Gopal Singhal." Asked if he received a letter from the residents, Vaish said, "We get so many letters and applications, it's hard to recall."
MP principal secretary (finance) Gopal Singhal, too, drew a blank. "I am not aware of this deal. The company has an office in Mumbai. The general manager K D Menon must have all the details. The government doesn't have much to do with the firm except providing guidelines," said Singhal. He, too, couldn't recall receiving any letter from Ambewadi residents.
Menon said notice for the land sale was announced in two city newspapers. "The company decided to sell the land because it was not getting good returns," he said. The property was sold on an "as is where is" basis for the highest bid of Rs 1.75 crore.
Minutes of the company's board meeting (May 20-21, 2002) reveal a previous tender received a single bid for just Rs 9.11 lakh, which was rejected. The board then decided to invite fresh bids. Six bidders responded and the highest was Rs 1.75 crore.
