The Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) is set to unveil its development plan (DP) nearly 29 years after it was established .

The NMMC's last general body approved the draught DP, but final clearances were delayed because the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) informed the state urban development department that its reservation on 200 plots would be impacted.

When this plan goes into effect, CIDCO's position as the preeminent town planner for the satellite city may be jeopardised. The NMMC was established in 1992. CIDCO, which was founded in 1976, was in charge of all city planning before that.

The NMMC draught plan was completed, and local urban bodies are given statutory authority to publish DPs under the Maharashtra Regional Town Planning Act. CIDCO, on the other hand, had objected to NMMC's reservations affecting its 200 plots. The problem has now been resolved, said Bhushan Gagrani, Principal Secretary of Urban Development.

A senior official told the media that NMMC made arbitrary reservations on about 200 CIDCO plots, which would have harmed the company's monetisation plans and development plans outside of Navi Mumbai.

The state government has asked NMMC to publish the draft DP and invite public comments and suggestions to resolve the issue. CIDCO's objections would be considered during this process.

Retired additional chief secretary R C Sinha, who was the first administrator of Navi Mumbai when it was established, claimed that CIDCO's town planning experience and established engineering system were of a calibre that no one in India can beat.

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