In a big relief to thousands of Mumbai residents, the Maharashtra government will regularise over 25,000 buildings in city which are without an Occupation Certificates (OCs).
Maharashtra Minister Ashish Shelar on Thursday announced that over 25,000 buildings which have been denied Occupation Certificates for years will soon be regularised under a new government policy.
The decision will benefit lakhs of Mumbaikars who have been living in these buildings without official recognition and were technically considered unauthorised occupants.
In a post on X, Shelar wrote, “Millions of Mumbaikars, despite owning their own homes, have technically been living as “unauthorised occupants” due to lack of OCs. The residents themselves are not at fault; the issues stemmed from loopholes in old regulations or mistakes by developers. To address this, the Urban Development Department will implement a new simplified policy starting from 2 October 2025, allowing such buildings to finally receive their OCs.”
The announcement was made following a key meeting between officials from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), urban development department, revenue department, and the co-operation department.
मुंबईकरांसाठी आनंदाची बातमी!
मुंबई महापालिकेच्या विकास नियंत्रण नियमावलीनुसार तसेच म्हाडा, एसआरए आणि इतर प्राधिकरणांच्या नियमांनुसार बांधकाम झालेले, परंतु विविध कारणांमुळे भोगवटा प्रमाणपत्र (Occupation Certificate ) न मिळालेल्या २५ हजारांहून अधिक इमारतींना आता ओसी मिळवण्यासाठी… pic.twitter.com/QodeF0MqaS
— Adv. Ashish Shelar – ॲड. आशिष शेलार (@ShelarAshish) September 11, 2025
“A policy is being drafted to issue OCs to buildings developed under the BMC’s Development Control Regulations, and to projects built by MHADA, SRA, and other authorities,” Ashish Shelar said, according to the PTI.
Shelar said that many buildings were denied certificates due to technical lapses, developer errors, or changes in building rules. The urban development department will now implement a simplified OC policy from October 2, 2025.
Buildings where certificates were withheld due to floor space discrepancies, setback issues, or administrative lapses will now be eligible for regularisation.
“Even if developers failed to hand over flats or spaces to the authorities, residents won’t be punished,” Ashish Shelar assured, according to the PTI.
“The entire process will be transparent and online,” he said.
Housing societies can apply jointly or individually for partial OCs. If applications are made within the first six months, there will be no penalties. However, if there is additional FSI (Floor Space Index) usage, the premium charges will need to be paid.
Shelar thanked Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, Deputy Chief Ministers Eknath Shinde and Ajit Pawar, and all departments involved for taking this “pro-people decision”.
“I appeal to all Mumbaikars to take advantage of this opportunity from October 2 onwards,” he said, the news agency reported.
(with PTI inputs)
