Piramal to invest Rs. 200 cr in Dhobi Ghat project.

Piramal Fund Management is investing Rs. 200 crore in Omkar Realtor's Dhobi Ghat slum redevelopment project in Mumbai.

The investment will be made in the proposed Saibaba Nagar SRA Coop Housing Society, commonly known as the Mahalaxmi Dhobi Ghat project, through the portfolio management service route.

The century-old Dhobi Ghat is an open-air laundry area spread across seven acres next to South Mumbai’s Mahalaxmi race course.

PMS is a collective pool of investments handled by a portfolio manager.

Khushru Jijina, MD, Piramal Fund told BusinessLine, “We have just finished raising funds for our Dhobi ghat project. The capital will be used rehabilitating the slum developers and also acquiring necessary approvals”.

Under the redevelopment plan, Omkar will rehabilitate the current dwellers and develop a commercial property in its place. The heritage washing area will be retained as it is.

As per industry sources, Dhobi Ghat is home to around 7,000 slum dwellers. The project aims to rehabilitate around 1,116 families along with 50 commercial tenants.

The work on the project is slated to start early next 2016.

The Bombay High Court last year had ordered the Maharashtra Government to call for fresh bids for the project, after the residents rejected plans by another Mumbai-based developer.

The new investment from Piramal comes even as the company recently announced its exit from Omkar Realtor and Developers’ residential project in Mumbai.

The real estate funding arm of Piramal Enterprises said it will make a couple of other exits worth Rs. 150-Rs. 200 crore within the next quarter.

It is also looking to invest in the commercial segment, which has been showing signs of revival.

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