Redevelopment of Mumbai mills


The redevelopment of Mumbai's cotton mills began in 1992, when efforts began to demolish the numerous cotton mills that once dotted the landscape of Mumbai, India, to make way for new residential and commercial buildings, as part of the wider modernization of Mumbai.

The cotton mill era and its decline

The mills of Girangaon were once integral to Mumbai's economy, particularly during the British colonial period, when Mumbai was often referred to as the "Manchester of the East". However, with the development of newer industries in and around Mumbai, these mills ceased to be profitable, and fell into a state of disrepair.
In the first half of the nineteenth century, India exported cotton to Britain, and then reimported the textile. In 1820, the total textile import was valued at Rs. 350,000. However, the cost had escalated significantly by 1860, when textile imports stood at Rs. 19.3 million. The impetus towards the founding of a cotton industry came from Indian entrepreneurs. The first Indian cotton mill, "The Bombay Spinning Mill", was opened in 1854 in Bombay by Cowasji Nanabhai Davar. Opposition from the Lancashire mill owners was eventually offset by the support of the British manufacturers of textile machinery.
The cotton mills of Bombay, and the rest of India, were owned and managed mainly by Indians. The initial investments came from families of the mill-owners, mainly obtained from trading. Later, when shares became available to the public, much of the ownership still remained Indian - of the 53 mills in the city in 1925, only 14 were British-owned. The management and directorships of these mills were also mainly Indian; of the 386 directorships recorded in 1925, only 44 were English.
By 1870, there were 13 mills in Bombay. Cotton exports grew during the American Civil War, when supplies from the United States's cotton plantations were interrupted. At the end of 1895, there were 70 mills; growing to 83 in 1915. A period of stagnation set in during the recession of the 1920s. In 1925, there were 81 mills in the city. After World War II, under strong competition from Japan, the mills declined. In 1973, there remained only 79 active mills in the city.
Gradually, the government relaxed its norms that once restricted the redevelopment of mill lands, and as a result, numerous high-profile builders quickly took possession of these land parcels. Between 1990 and 2010, the majority of these mill lands were acquired and redeveloped.

List of mills in Mumbai

The table below lists the names and district locations of Mumbai's former mills, and the structures that stand on their land today. This list is not exhaustive.
Name of former millLocationNew development
Ambika MillsWorliNamaste Tower
Apollo Mills MahalaxmiLodha Bellissimo/Primero
Bharat MillsworliIndia Bulls Blu
Bombay Dyeing & Manufacturing CompanyWorliHard Rock Café / ICC Bombay Realty
Bombay Dyeing DadarSpring Mills tower
Bradbury MillsJacob CircleNo development
Century Spinning & Weaving MillsWorliCentury Bazaar
China Mill compoundSewriDosti Flamingos
Dawn MillsLower ParelPeninsula/Piramal Project
Digvijay MillsKalachowkieNo development
Elphinstone Mills ElphinstoneIndiabulls Finance Centre and Indiabulls Sky Suites
Empire MillsLower ParelEmpire Business Park
Gokuldas Morarjee Mills no.1ParelAshok Towers
Gokuldas Morarjee Mills no.2Lower ParelPeninsula Corporate park
Gold Mohur MillsDadarNo development
Hindoostan Spinning & Weaving Mills No.1Jacob CircleRaheja Vivarea
Hindoostan Spinning & Weaving Mills no.2Jacob CircleKalpataru Heights
Hindoostan Spinning & Weaving Mills no.3 PrabhadeviOrchid Crown
Hindoostan Spinning & Weaving Mills no.4PrabhadeviWadhwa The 25 South
India United Dye Works no.6 PrabhadeviIndia International Trade Center
India United Mills no.1 Parel/Currey RoadNo development
India United Mills no.2KalachowkieMCGM
India United Mills no.3KalachowkieMCGM
India United Mills no.4KalachowkieMHADA
India United Mills no.5BycullaNo development
India United Mills no.6MahimNo development
Jam MillsLalbaugMHADA
Jupiter Mills Lower ParelIndiabulls Sky
Kamala MillsLower ParelKamala City
Khatau Makanji Spinning & Weaving MillsBycullaMonte-South
Kohinoor Mills No.1 Dadar No development
Kohinoor Mills No.2 Dadar No development
Kohinoor Mills No.3 DadarKohinoor Mill Mall
Madhusudhan MillsWorliEnpar Lotus Towers
Mafatlal Mills no.1BycullaPiramal Aranya
Mafatlal Mills no.2Byculla
Mafatlal Mills no.3Lower ParelMarathon Futurex
Matrudas MillsLower ParelMatrudas Mills Compound's
Matulya MillsLower ParelSun Palazzo, Ashford Casa Grande
Mukesh Textile MillsColabaVenue for Bollywood filming
Modern MillsJacob CircleMahindra Belvedere Court
Morarjee Textile MillsParelAshok Towers
Mumbai Textile Mills Lower ParelLodha The Park
New City of Bombay Mfg MillsKalachowkieNo development
New Great Eastern Spinning & Weaving MillsBycullaPeninsula Land
New Hind Textile MillsBycullaMHADA
New Islam MillsParelOne Avighna Park
Paragon MillsWorliParagon Centre
Phoenix MillsLower ParelHigh Street Phoenix
Piramal Spinning & Weaving MillsLower ParelMarathon Nextgen by Marathon Group
Poddar MillsLower ParelNo development
Poddar Processors WorliIndiabulls Blu
Prakash Cotton MillsWorliNo development
Raghuvanshi MillsLower ParelK-lifestyle
Ruby MillsDadarRuby Corporate Park
Shakti MillsWorliNo development
Shree Madhusudan Mills
Shree Ram MillsWorliPalais Royale, Mumbai
Shriniwas MillsLower ParelWorld One
Simplex MillsJacob CirclePlanet Godrej
Sitaram MillsMahalaxmiMCGM
Standard MillsPrabhadeviSheth Beaumonde and Chaitanya Towers
Sun Mills CompoundWorliZenzi Mills Club / Lokhandwala Victoria
Swadeshi MillsKurlaSwadeshi Garden
Swan MillsSewriAshok Gardens
Todi MillsLower ParelTodi mills Compound
Tata Mills Dadar No development
Umri MillsLower ParelUrmi Estate
Trinity MillsPrabhadeviSummer Trinity
Victoria MillsLower ParelVictoria House & Car park
Western India Spinning & Weaving MillKalachowkieNo development