MUMBAI, Sept. 13 -- This year's record-breaking flooding of the Mithi River has brought hope that an old promise will be kept. Residents of Kranti Nagar and Sandesh Nagar, two of several flood-prone slum settlements on the river's banks, will be resettled in the HDIL Premier complex for Project-Affected Persons (PAPs) in Kurla West. After being promised resettlement as PAPs of an airport rehabilitation plan that hasn't quite taken off, 630 families from these two slum colonies will finally be rehoused by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA). But the residents are not exactly holding their breath. To begin with, one of eight dilapidated buildings of the HDIL Premier housing complex will be repaired, to make the small units livable for these 630 families. Built in 2008 by Housing Development & Infrastructure Limited (HDIL), on a plot where the Premier Padmini automobile factory once stood, the complex was abandoned as HDIL was facing corporate insolvency resolution proceedings. The buildings, which fell to ruin, were then handed over to MMRDA and the Slum Redevelopment Authority (SRA). Now, MMRDA has floated a tender to repair building number 1. Work is scheduled to begin from October 1 and is expected to be completed within six months. Just like Kranti Nagar, sprawling slum colonies on the banks of the Mithi have turned the river into an open sewer along its 18-km course. Dumping of household waste, construction and other debris, and waste from small-scale industries have constricted its flow, choking the river and contributing to monsoon floodwaters backing up into low-lying settlements along its banks. Each year, flooding and forced evacuation return as a grim ritual that fill these slum residents with dread. "When the river rose to 3.9m on August 20 (not far from the danger mark of 4.2m), more than 350 slum residents were evacuated. "Of these, 100 residents were from Sandesh Nagar," said local MLA Dilip Lande. He said repairs of the HDIL Premier buildings began in 2022 and some (MMRDA says 1,450 families) slum residents were moved in as part of the pending airport rehabilitation plan. The August 20 flooding along the river's banks made headline news, goading the authorities into action. Mahesh Panigrahy, a Kranti Nagar resident, said, "The HDIL building has been like a khanddar for years, with damaged wiring. It was also used as a den by unruly elements. In 2019, we protested and demanded homes in two buildings." The new homes being offered are 1BHK units with 270sq ft carpet area. At present, there is no clarity on who will make it to the list of 630 families that qualify for the resettlement. Rohit Babar, a resident of Sapre Chawl in Kranti Nagar, said, "Our rehabilitation has been hanging fire for years. This year, the Mithi River floodwaters entered our homes three times and destroyed our belongings. We've been assured homes, but no concrete plan has been shared with us." Suraj Kanwar, who also lives in Kranti Nagar, had to move in with his sister's family in Kurla when the floodwaters entered his tenement. "I've lived here for 29 years. We're among the 630 families to be shifted. Hopefully, it will take place this time round." An MMRDA spokesperson told HT, "MMRDA has already completed the rehabilitation of 1,450 families from Kranti Nagar and Sandesh Nagar into HDIL Kurla over the last two years, reflecting our consistent focus on providing secure housing to Project Affected Persons, particularly those along the sensitive banks of the Mithi River. To further this effort, eight buildings constructed by HDIL have been handed over to MMRDA for rehabilitation. While these buildings were not maintained in good condition at the time of handover, MMRDA has drawn up a systematic repair and restoration plan to bring them up to safe and habitable standards." He claimed that once the repairs are complete, the rehabilitation of all families from Kranti Nagar, Sandesh Nagar, and the Airport Slum will be undertaken, step by step, in the HDIL Kurla complex....