The Bombay High Court has dismissed Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority's (MHADA) plea for relaxed height restrictions on a proposed 40-storey building near Mumbai's International Airport. Citing the paramount importance of civil aviation safety, Justices Gautam Patel and Kamal Khata emphasized concerns raised by the civil aviation ministry's appellate authority regarding the building's height. MHADA sought to construct 560 low-cost housing units at Kopri village, Powai, within the airport's 4km radius. The court upheld the reduced height of 96.68m AMSL, rejecting MHADA's challenge and emphasizing universal civil aviation safety standards. The decision sets a precedent for responsible urban development near airports.
The Bombay High Court has dismissed Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority's (MHADA) plea seeking relaxation of height restrictions for a proposed 40-storey building near Mumbai's International Airport.
Justices Gautam Patel and Kamal Khata underscored the paramount importance of civil aviation safety in their decision, noting that the appellate authority of the civil aviation ministry expressed concerns regarding the proposed building's height near the airport.
MHADA had proposed constructing 560 low-cost housing units in a building reaching 115.54 meters above the mean sea level (AMSL), or nearly 40 floors, at Kopri village, Powai. The site falls within the 4km radius of the airport, prompting regulatory scrutiny.
On February 10, 2020, an Airports Authority of India committee allowed a height of 58.48m AMSL, later increased to 96.68m by the appellate authority on December 15, 2021.
The high court observed that MHADA's challenge to the reduction in height would result in a decrease in the number of tenements to 392. The judges emphasized that MHADA cannot claim a legal or constitutional right to a taller building, stressing that civil aviation safety standards apply universally.
The court expressed reluctance to accept the idea of oversized MHADA towers not posing potential dangers to aircraft taking off or landing at Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport.
Highlighting the sloped nature of Airports Authority of India-specified height restrictions – lower heights closer to the airport – the judges deemed the appellate authority's order favorable to MHADA. They asserted that MHADA is not being selectively targeted for height curbs, and if permitted, such relaxation would have to be extended to every other applicant or developer.
The high court rejected MHADA's petition, stating, "Such a petition was never to have been filed and certainly not by a responsible public authority." The decision underscores the importance of adhering to aviation safety standards and sets a precedent for responsible urban development near airports.
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