The Maharashtra government has decided to acquire the famous Air India building at Nariman Point in Mumbai for Rs 1,601 crore. An official provided this information on Wednesday. This decision was taken in the state cabinet meeting in Mumbai. The official said the meeting chaired by Chief Minister Eknath Shinde also decided to waive off interest on unrealized income and assets worth Rs 250 crore.
The building was constructed in 1974 on land owned by the state government, which will now use it for its office. Following the 2012 fire at the state secretariat building ‘Mantralaya’ in South Mumbai, four key departments – Public Health, Medical Education, Water Supply and Sanitation and Rural Development – operate from the GT Hospital.
The official said these and other departments can be shifted to Air India Bhawan. The 23-storey building is owned by Air India Assets Holding Limited, a company formed by the Union Civil Aviation Ministry in 2018 to manage all the assets owned by Air India.
At present, nine floors of the building are vacant. GST offices are on three floors, while the Income Tax Department is on eight floors. Air India currently owns the ground floor and first floor, and the government has informed Air India Assets Holding Company that it should free the building from the encumbrances. The Air India building was put up for sale in 2018. Its area is 4.99 lakh square feet.
