G&B-Godrej Properties partnership to continue for Vikhroli land development

Godrej & Boyce and Godrej Properties on Wednesday said they would continue their association for land development at Vikhroli in Mumbai, a day after the founding family of the Godrej group announced an amicable split of the conglomerate.

In a joint statement, Godrej & Boyce, owner-developer, and Godrej Properties, the development manager, said the two companies will continue their Memorandums of Understanding executed from time to time, for development of land in Vikhroli as and when the owner is desirous of developing the land.

Godrej Construction, a business of Godrej & Boyce, designed and built four phases of Godrej Platinum, a residential development project with a total constructed area of 1 million square feet, which has been marketed by Godrej Properties. 

In March 2024, a new project named Godrej Vistas was successfully launched under this arrangement, it added.

According to some estimates, the 3,000-acre parcel in Vikhroli owned by G&B has a development potential of over Rs 1 lakh crore.

It can develop 1,000 acres, while about 1,750 acres are covered with mangroves and is the destination of rare plants and birds.

About 300 acres of land have already been encroached upon.

The Vikhroli property was bought at a public auction from the Bombay High Court receiver in 1941-42 by Pirojsha Godrej, younger brother of group founder Ardeshir Godrej.

It was previously owned by a Parsi merchant Framjee Banaji, who bought it from the East India Company in the 1830s.

Under the family settlement announced late on Wednesday, the group has been split between two branches of the founding family, with Adi Godrej (82) and his brother Nadir (73) on one side and their cousins Jamshyd Godrej (75) and Smita Godrej Crishna (74) on the other.

Godrej Enterprises Group comprising Godrej & Boyce and its affiliates that have a presence across multiple industries spanning aerospace and aviation to defence, furniture and IT software will be controlled by Jamshyd Godrej as chairperson and managing director.

His sister Smita's daughter Nyrika Holkar, 42, will be the executive director