Buyers in large Maharashtra cities often notice a smaller building at the edge of a big scheme and assume it is staff housing or a later phase. Frequently it is neither. It is the part of the project the code required before the rest could be sold.
Key takeaways
- Inclusive housing applies only in Municipal Corporations with a population of 10 lakh or more.
- It bites at 4,000 sq m or more, measured after deducting Development Plan roads and reservations, for both layouts and group housing schemes.
- A layout must give 20 percent of the plot area; a group housing scheme must build EWS and LIG tenements to at least 20 percent of the basic FSI.
- Those tenements are 30 to 50 sq m in carpet area and are not counted towards FSI. They sit over and above the permissible FSI and TDR.
- The affordable component may be provided within 1.0 km or in the same ward instead of on site.
- The Authority must not issue the occupancy certificate for the rest of the scheme until the affordable tenements have theirs.
Where the rule applies
Chapter 3, Regulation 3.8.1, This regulation shall be applicable only to Municipal Corporations having population 10... scopes it tightly: the regulation applies only to Municipal Corporations having a population of 10 lakh or more as per the latest Census.
Chapter 3, Regulation 3.8.2, Inclusive Housing then sets the size threshold at 4,000 sq m or more, measured after deducting the area under Development Plan or Regional Plan roads and DP reservations, including deemed reservations under these regulations. That threshold applies to a sub-division or layout of land for residential purpose, and separately to a plot developed as a housing scheme of one or more buildings.
What a layout owes
For a sub-division or layout, at least 20 percent of the plot area must be provided in one of these forms.
| Option | What it means |
|---|---|
| Developed affordable plots | Plots of 30.0 to 50.0 sq m for Economically Weaker Sections and Low Income Groups, for allotment to allottees on the list provided by MHADA |
| Plots handed to MHADA | Plot or plots equivalent to 20 percent of the plot area for constructing EWS and LIG tenements, handed over to MHADA, with the proportionate road and recreational open space of that 20 percent included within it |
| Build them yourself | The owner or developer may construct the EWS and LIG tenements on that 20 percent, on the group housing terms below |
| Hand over for FSI or TDR | Hand the affordable plots to MHADA at one place in lieu of FSI or development rights, to be used on the remaining plots. Where the developer does not want to use that FSI on the same land, TDR is awarded instead, subject to the TDR regulations |
In each of the first three cases, the affordable plots or tenements may also be provided at another location within 1.0 km of the original location, or within the same ward.
What a group housing scheme owes
For a group housing scheme on a plot of 4,000 sq m or more, EWS and LIG housing in the form of tenements between 30.0 and 50.0 sq m of carpet area must be constructed to at least 20 percent of the basic FSI.
Two conditions travel with that, and both matter to anyone buying in the scheme.
The obligation costs land and construction, not FSI. Regulation 3.8.2(b)(i) states that the built up area of the EWS and LIG tenements shall not be counted towards FSI, and that this 20 percent is over and above the permissible FSI and TDR under UDCPR.
That is a deliberate design. If the affordable component consumed the project's FSI, it would come directly out of saleable area and every developer would fight it. Because it sits outside the FSI calculation, the developer is giving up construction cost and ground rather than sale potential.
And the occupancy certificate is sequenced. Regulation 3.8.2(b)(ii) requires the developer to construct the affordable stock on the same plot, and requires the Authority to ensure that the occupancy certificate for the rest of the development is not issued until the occupancy certificate is issued for the affordable housing tenements.
For a buyer in the main towers, that is a real and specific timing risk, and it is not visible from anything about your own building. Possession of a flat in a qualifying scheme depends on a component you are not buying into being finished and certified first.
Where the affordable tenements are provided off site instead, within 1.0 km or the same ward, the regulation sets the extent at 40 percent of the basic permissible FSI over and above the permissible built up area.
Why this is worth asking about
Names and numbers in this story are illustrative. Priya and Arjun's Pune shortlist included a scheme on roughly 5,000 sq m, comfortably over the threshold and inside a corporation the regulation covers.
The question they had not thought to ask was where the affordable component was, and whether it was on site or within the 1 km alternative. It mattered for one reason only: on site, Regulation 3.8.2(b)(ii) ties their own occupancy certificate to its completion.
That is not an argument against buying in such a scheme. It is an argument for knowing which component is on the critical path.
What to check
- Establish the corporation's population class, because below 10 lakh the regulation does not apply at all.
- Check the plot area after deducting DP roads and reservations against the 4,000 sq m threshold.
- Ask where the affordable component is: on site, within 1 km, in the same ward, or handed to MHADA for FSI or TDR.
- If it is on site, ask what stage it has reached, since your occupancy certificate follows its occupancy certificate.
- Do not expect it to reduce the towers, because the 20 percent sits outside the FSI calculation.
Where the filings come in
The register does not label a project as inclusive-housing-liable, but it carries the two facts that decide it: the filed land area, which is on essentially every project, and the district and taluka that identify the corporation.
Beyond that, the filing records what actually matters for the timing question above: the original and current completion dates, every extension the promoter sought and the reason they gave, building by building progress against the eleven activity checklist, and any complaints or litigation with case numbers. All of it is free to read at reragenie.com.
ReraGenie's buyer report, Rs 499, reads one project's full filing and the documents behind it, compares the possession slip with the median for the same pincode, and lists what the filings do not contain. It includes a project watch for 90 days, so a further extension reaches you by email.
For the other component-based purchase where someone else's entitlement shapes yours, see buying in a redevelopment.
Source: Unified Development Control and Promotion Regulations for Maharashtra, UDCPR as updated 30 January 2025. Sanctioned under the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966.
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