The poll-bound Maharashtra government has issued an order extending the slum regularisation date from January 1, 1995 to January 1, 2000. The decision to extend the deadline for legal slums by five years was taken by the State Cabinet in February. The move comes just three months before the State Assembly polls and is expected to benefit 35 lakh slum dwellers.
The extension of the slum deadline from 1995 to 2000 was an electoral promise made in the Congress-Nationalist Congress Party manifesto nine years ago. However it could not be implemented because of legal hurdles, with the case pending in the Supreme Court.
“There are 7.5 lakh slums in the State and 3.5 lakh in Mumbai. This decision will benefit those who were not protected earlier,” said Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan.