MUMBAI: Between 2021 and August 2025, the city witnessed 345 incidents of total or partial cessed building collapses, resulting in 8 fatalities and 28 injuries, according to data acquired under the Right to Information (RTI) Act by activist Jeetendra Ghadge.
While the number of deaths is lower compared to previous decades, records from Mhada spanning 1970 to 2018 indicate that 815 people have lost their lives in such incidents.
The Maharashtra government modified the Mhada Act in 2020 to expedite the redevelopment of precarious cessed buildings.
The 2020 amendments—which introduced Sections 79A and 79B—were a response to repeated tragedies, including the 2017 Husaini Manzil collapse that resulted in 33 casualties and the 2019 Dongri building fall that claimed 14 lives. The 2020 Fort collapse also led to 10 fatalities.
These new provisions mandate landlords to redevelop unsafe cessed buildings within six months. If they fail to do so, tenants (with 51% agreement) can form cooperatives to execute the redevelopment. If all else fails, Mhada is authorized to intervene and manage the redevelopment process.
The revised law sparked hope for over 13,000 aging cessed buildings in Mumbai, many of which were built before 1940 and house countless families.
Activist Jeetendra Ghadge from The Young Whistleblowers Foundation remarked, “Countless tenants are suffering due to the malpractice of a few Mhada officials who have exploited the 79A process.”
On July 28, 2025, a Bombay High Court bench consisting of Justice G.S. Kulkarni and Justice Arif S. Doctor ordered the formation of an independent committee to assess 935 redevelopment notices issued under Section 79A of the Mhada Act, 1976.
The court labeled these notices as a “colossal misuse of power,” thereby questioning Mhada’s authority.
Until the review is concluded, Mhada has been barred from issuing new notices.
Mhada contested the high court ruling in the Supreme Court, where the case was presented on September 15, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta. Following detailed discussions, the Supreme Court decided to reserve its order until September 24.
