The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has announced that the ambitious coastal road project spanning 10km between Marine Drive and Worli will be completed by December 2022. This is despite the authorities facing a five-month setback after the work was stayed by the court, which was only eased in December 2019.
A BMC official said that after the stay was relaxed on the 17th of December, 2019, it has only taken a month to immobilize workers and the equipment needed for the work to resume again.
The ambitious project is set to cost Rs 12,000 crore and was commissioned in October 2018 with a deadline of four years. Despite facing legal issues, the delay doesn’t seem to have affected the original deadline by much.
Authorities are waiting for a TBM (tunnel boring machine) to arrive from China for this purpose. An official said “We need to ensure that by the time the TBM arrives the launching shaft is ready, so that once it reaches the site it can be lowered into the shaft.”
Keeping the local ocean and the fishermen in mind, the authorities have reportedly been directed to make sure that the fisherfolk aren’t impacted by this project.
State Tourism Minister, Aaditya Thackeray meanwhile remained optimistic about the project. He recently tweeted “The work has resumed at a phenomenal speed and we are committed to serve Mumbai better.”
As part of the original contract, any delays in the original 24-month deadline would also result in penalties. This partially explains the haste on the part of the contractors to get this done well in time for the deadline. However, it is not known how the court-ordered stay will impact the penalties decided upon originally.
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