Maharashtra government has drafted a comprehensive set of guidelines to reform cooperative housing society operations—impacting more than 1.25 lakh societies across the state. With nearly 70% of these located in the densely populated Mumbai Metropolitan Region, the changes are expected to significantly influence how urban housing is managed and redeveloped.
The draft guidelines propose to cut the steep interest charged on overdue payments from members, lowering it from 21% to a more moderate 12%. Officials believe this will ease financial pressure on residents while ensuring better compliance. More importantly, the reforms are designed to encourage self-redevelopment by allowing housing societies to raise loans up to ten times the land value—empowering communities to manage redevelopment independently, without excessive reliance on private builders.
With digital access increasingly central to civic functioning, the proposed rules now enable virtual participation in Annual General Meetings (AGMs). A quorum of either 20 members or two-thirds of the total membership—whichever is lower—will be necessary. If the quorum is not achieved, meetings can be reconvened within a window of 7 to 30 days, without quorum restrictions. AGMs involving redevelopment decisions will now require mandatory video recording to ensure legal validity and procedural transparency.
The draft also introduces the concept of ‘provisional members’—a reform directed at streamlining inheritance and membership transfer. Legal heirs or nominees of deceased members will be granted temporary voting rights and membership participation until the legal ownership transfer process is complete. However, these individuals will not enjoy any ownership rights until the formal transfer is recorded.In a progressive urban planning move, the guidelines extend governance participation to commercial establishments and shops located within cooperative housing complexes. These will be categorised under ‘premises societies’, granting them a legitimate say in matters such as redevelopment and shared maintenance—reflecting the integrated land use realities of modern Mumbai neighbourhoods.
Another key feature of the draft is the restructuring of service charges and financial contributions. Common service charges must now be distributed equally among all flats, while water charges will be calculated based on the number of taps in each unit—introducing fairness and accountability in resource use. In addition, the rules specify that every society must annually contribute at least 0.25% of the construction cost to a sinking fund and 0.75% to a repair and maintenance fund. These mandated provisions are expected to improve financial planning for infrastructure upkeep and emergency works.
According to senior officials, fewer than 100 suggestions and objections were received from stakeholders, including housing federations, architects, and valuers—indicating limited resistance to the proposed changes. The state cooperation department will review the draft before forwarding it for legal vetting and final notification.Authorities involved in the reform effort emphasised that the transition from loosely defined by-laws to codified rules would reduce ambiguities that often cause internal disputes or force societies to seek intervention from the registrar’s office. In many such instances, costly administrators are appointed, further delaying decision-making. By offering legal clarity, the new rules aim to prevent such breakdowns in governance.
Experts from cooperative advocacy groups have largely welcomed the draft guidelines, noting that they promote transparency, empower resident collectives, and provide long-term structural direction for housing society management. If successfully implemented, the reforms are expected to make cooperative societies more resilient, financially independent, and participatory—advancing a model of equitable and sustainable urban living that Mumbai critically needs.
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