MUMBAI: As part of a family settlement, siblings Jamshyd Godrej and Smita Crishna will hold exclusive construction rights over 3,000-odd acres of land holdings under Godrej & Boyce Manufacturing Company in Mumbai’s eastern suburbs, making G&B the biggest private landowner in Mumbai. The land was an issue of contention as Godrej Properties Ltd (GPL), which will be fully controlled by Jamshyd and Smita’s cousins Adi and Nadir Godrej, has benefitted from G&B’s holdings. In a statement on Wednesday, G&B and GPL said the two will continue their association for development of land in Vikhroli owned by the former, as and when they desire to do so. While G&B will design and construct projects on the land, GPL will market them, a source said, adding “GPL will earn 10% of the net sales of the development on the land”. Nearly 1,000 acres of Godrej land in the city worth Rs 1 lakh crore can be developed.
A significant part of the 3,000-acre sprawl is covered with mangroves which are protected, but nearly 1,000 acres of it can be developed. The family has held these land parcels since the early 1940s after winning them in a govt auction and acquiring adjoining plots over the decades. This developable land is estimated to be worth Rs 1 lakh crore. A 2015 survey by the state’s Slum Rehabilitation Authority showed that nine private landowners and private trusts control around 6,600 acres in Mumbai, whose limits stretch from Colaba to Dahisar in the western suburbs and up to Mulund in the eastern suburbs. The F E Dinshaw Trust (controlled by Wadia Group chairman Nusli Wadia) owns 683 acres of land in Malad while the Pratap Singh Surji Vallabhdas family controls 647 acres in Bhandup, showed the survey, which is the last available finding by a state authority.
According to the Godrej family settlement pact, both branches of the family can use the Godrej brand across the spectrum of real estate businesses — from design to development to marketing of projects and for facilities management services. However, the agreement restricts G&B from buying additional land for developing residential projects, though it can buy land for its in-house requirements like setting up a manufacturing facility. In other words, G&B can only use its existing land banks to develop residential projects. This existing land bank would include holdings outside Vikhroli, for which G&B will control everything — from development to sales of projects, the source added. GPL will have no construction or marketing rights there. G&B is unlisted and will be under full ownership of Jamshyd and Smita as part of the settlement agreement. GPL, with a market capitalisation of Rs 73,641 crore, is one of the most successful companies in the Godrej group.