Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and Worli MLA Aaditya Thackeray urged Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Wednesday to expedite the handover of keys for 556 housing units in the redeveloped Bombay Development Department (BDD) chawls in Worli before the Ganesh festival, starting September 6, 2025.

In a letter to Fadnavis, Thackeray noted that Phase 1 of the BDD Redevelopment Project, covering wings D and E of Building No. 1, has been completed, with an Occupation Certificate issued on July 22, 2025, and units allotted to tenants. Thackeray emphasized the tenants’ desire to celebrate the festival in their new 500-square-foot homes, moving out of rented or transit accommodations. “For how long will they reside in transit housing?” he asked, adding that vacating transit units would accelerate further redevelopment by freeing space for other residents.

The project, initiated in 2021 under Uddhav Thackeray’s Maha Vikas Aghadi government, aims to rehouse 9,689 Worli families across 33 towers, with 121 of 195 BDD chawls in Worli. MHADA, tasked with the ₹16,000-crore project, plans to hand over the 556 units by August 15, 2025, per a senior official.

The handover, potentially involving Fadnavis, Eknath Shinde, and Ajit Pawar, marks a milestone in transforming the 1920s-era chawls, originally built for textile workers.

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