The 60 hectares plot belonging to the Revenue department is situated at the junction of Eastern Express highway and Ghatkopar-Mankhurd link road. Surrounded by slums on all sides it is a much sought after land both by developers and slum dwellers, according to a government offcial. He added that the rate at which the slums are proliferating over there, if the land is not used, there will be none of it left after two years. It was also learnt that the reservation was made recently about five years back.

The cabinet was supposed to finalise the list of open plots to be used under SPP on Tuesday, however, after Revenue Minister Narayan Rane raised basic objection on the procedure adopted for dereservation of plots required for the scheme, the decision on the proposal was deferred.

The SPP was also considering a MHADA land at Turbhe-Mandale at Mankhurd and MMRDA plots at Charkop and Oshiwara. The land at Oshiwara admeasures about around 20 hectares. Almost 1000 free flats for slumdwellers can be built on one hectare of land, informed a SPP official adding that half of the Ghatkopar plot can be used to build 30,000 flats.

The SPP plans to construct the rehabilitation buildings comprising 225 sq ft tenements on open plots to be handed over to the slum dwellers to save time on building transit camps. It has drawn plans to build only 250 transit tenaments in ground plus one structures at an open land available in Dharavi.