Wadhwa, Deserve Exim Ink Pact for 13.5-acre Chembur Slum Rehab Project

Mumbai-based builder Wadhwa Group has entered into an agreement with another local developer Deserve Exim to acquire a slum rehabilitation project spread over 13.5 acres in city suburb Chembur, said persons familiar with the development. The project, with total estimated saleable space of over 8 lakh sq ft, has revenue potential of nearly . 900 crore. Deserve Exim has already applied to the slum rehabilitation authority with the project proposal, and the development potential may vary according to the actual clearance, said one of the sources. 

The 13.5-acre plot is part of a larger targeted project spread over 40 acres. However, Wadhwa has so far entered into development pact for only first phase and is yet to decide on participating in the entire 40-acre project. 
Under the joint development 
pact, Wadhwa Group will get 60% revenue of the project, while the rest will go to partner Deserve Exim. As part of the transaction, Wadhwa Group is also expected to pay around . 50 crore as an upfront payment for the project in two tranches. 
Wadhwa Group officials declined to comment for the story, while an email query sent to Deserve Exim remained unanswered. The slum, under first phase of the project, is situated behind RK Studio in Chembur and has total 850 tenements who will need to be rehabilitated to claim the free-sale component of the project. 
Wadhwa Group is planning to develop residences targeting middle-income group. Currently, rate of such residential properties in Chembur is between . 11,000 and . 12,000 per sq ft. 
In the backdrop of scarcity of open and vacant land parcels in Mumbai, slum rehabilitation projects have been attracting realty developers with an opportunity to get prime plots. However, despite being developers, many large entities do not have the expertise in handling an SRA project, which most importantly involves handling tenant issues and, therefore, they prefer tie-ups to get access to these land parcels.