Cuffe Parade Machhimar Nagar facelift to commence soon

The makeover of Machhimar Nagar in Cuffe Parade is set to begin in right earnest. After five years of unstinting effort by former local corporator Harshita Narwekar, the BMC has finally approved the jetty design layout for the Machhimar Nagar promenade. The cost of Phase One of the project will be approximately ₹3 crore

Mumbai: The makeover of Machhimar Nagar in Cuffe Parade is set to begin in right earnest. After five years of unstinting effort by former local corporator Harshita Narwekar, the BMC has finally approved the jetty design layout for the Machhimar Nagar promenade. The cost of Phase One of the project will be approximately ₹3 crore.

Cuffe Parade Machhimar Nagar facelift to commence soon

The promenade, designed by Plural Architects and Urban Planners, comprises north and south plazas with planters and art and light installations. In addition, there will be an amphitheatre and a sitout area with gardens and a viewing gallery. The end result promises to be aesthetically remarkable.

“We have been planning this facelift since 2018 and finally managed to get funds after the change in dispensation,” said Narwekar. “We wanted a clean promenade where people could sit amid local aesthetics like wall murals. The architect has designed a passage for boats and boat parking. After this is done, the back promenade will be ready with a viewing gallery and an amphitheatre.”

The koliwada project is also the brainchild of legislative assembly speaker Rahul Narwekar and guardian minister Deepak Kesarkar. “The locals wanted community spaces, which we will design in the second phase,” Narwekar told HT. “Since, tourists visit Machimar, there will be mural art displays and holographic art. There will also be a green reef so that the sea water doesn’t hit the walls.”

Sangita Hasnale, deputy municipal commissioner, Zone 1, said that the entrance to Machhimar Nagar would also get a makeover. “There will be a gazebo and a food truck run by fisherwomen,” she said. “The jetty area will be beautified with lights. “We will also look at whether the houses of kolis can be adapted into home stays to promote local tourism as well as create additional earning opportunities for them.”

The project’s emphasis will primarily be on encouraging local tourism, generating revenue and celebrating the heritage of the kolis, who are Mumbai’s earliest residents. The BMC is planning several cultural activities to spread awareness of the community’s way of life and set up photo booths where tourists will be encouraged to take pictures of themselves in traditional koli outfits. In an artistic touch, the roofs of the houses will also be painted in a uniform colour to make for a stunning roofscape for the eyes of air travellers and residents of the surrounding highrises.

Around 40 acres of the area have been taken up for beautification. Commenting on the objective behind the exercise, Hasnale said, “This koliwada was a neglected one, and the aim is to encourage its residents and bring the place into the spotlight. We want to make this a popular tourist attraction.”