Thane’s British-era cannons target tourists

Come March, Thane residents will be able to get a glimpse of the city’s rich history by visiting Kopri creek as authorities are planning to put 12 British-era cannons,

Come March, Thane residents will be able to get a glimpse of the city’s rich history by visiting Kopri creek as authorities are planning to put 12 British-era cannons, found along the creek, on display on a podium.

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Kopri creek is host to 13 British-era cannons which until last year were lying in shambles, hidden among the mangroves along the creek. The local Koli community protected them the cannons and used it as anchors for their ship.

Eight months ago, the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) and the Maritime Board had put six cannons on display, while six more will be displayed by February. One of the 13 cannons is placed inside a temple close to the creek. This cannon will be left in the temple itself.

In May last year, the excavation and preservation process of these cannons began when, the TMC, Maritime Board and conservation group Durgavir Prathishthan came together.

They dug out six of the 13 cannons and placed them on a raised platform. The authorities are planning to place the remaining six on the opposite side of the previous cannons.

Sachin Joshi, researcher and member of the state fort conservation committee, said, “Both the podiums are placed on either side of the temple near the Kopri creek. On each side, there are three small raised platforms placed in a circular shape. Each of them has two cannons. We will use a crane to excavate six more and place the cannons on the podium on the other side.”

Joshi added, “As these cannons have been half-buried for years and they are used to the humid climatic conditions. Once outside, they will be exposed to rain and sun.”

The corporation claimed that they were waiting for monsoon to get over to excavate the remaining cannons.

Sandeep Malvi, deputy municipal commissioner of TMC, said, “We waited for few months to allow the cannons to get acclimatised to the climatic conditions as per suggestions by historians and conservationists. Once the restoration is completed, the Kopri creek area will be converted into a tourist hub and the cannons would be one of the major attractions here.”

“A board explaining the importance, significance and history of the cannons will also be put up. The surrounding areas will also be cleaned and a waterfront will be built thus turning this into a tourist hub,” he said.

In 2016, Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) was informed about the existence of these cannons. Two of them were dug up and put on display at Kala Bhavan and at the TMC office.

Meanwhile, the ongoing work of the waterfront project has made it difficult for the locals to see the cannons.

The corporation is beautifying the waterfront at Kopri creek and the huge rocks excavated in this work are lying around the cannons.

Prahlad Nakhwa, 69, local resident, said, “There is no proper pathway leading to these cannons. Only when the waterfront project is completed the cannons on display would be seen.”

Mohan Kalal, city engineer, TMC, said, “Our completion schedule is for December 2020 but we are planning to finish the work before monsoon.We will open some portions of the waterfront by March this year so that people can see the cannons and enjoy the creekfront. ”