BMC chief wants encroachments along LBS Road gone by December 15

The much-delayed project to widen Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Road may finally get a push as the municipal commissioner had directed civic officials to remove encroachments

The much-delayed project to widen Lal Bahadur Shastri (LBS) Road may finally get a push as the municipal commissioner had directed civic officials to remove encroachments by December 15.

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This is the first time that a deadline has been set for removing structures and this will speed up the project, said civic officials.

The 21-km road is one of the busiest roads in the city with an average of one lakh vehicular density daily. The peak-hour rush slows down vehicles, leaving commuters hassled.

LBS Road is 60 to 90 feet wide and the BMC plans to widen it to 120 feet. The ₹400-crore project will have pedestrian crossing areas and pedestrian refuge areas.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) will carry out a massive demolition drive to remove 200 structures in Kurla and Vidyavihar areas.

A senior civic official working on the widening project said, “In a recent review meeting held by the municipal commissioner, officials of L (Kurla, Vidyavihar), N (Ghatkopar) and S wards (Vikhroli, Bhandup) were directed to remove the structures for LBS Road widening work. There were 300 structures along the road at Kurla and Vidyavihar. Of these, 100 have been demolished and the rest will be removed by December 15.”

A majority of the structures are commercial establishments, which will either be rehabilitated or given compensation.

LBS Road, from Sion to Mulund, is heavily congested because of overcrowded railway stations nearby. The road connects eastern and western suburbs.

Officials said there are encroachments on critical stretches, creating traffic bottlenecks. The BMC first mooted the project in 2012 but opposition from shop keepers delayed the road-widening work.

Jitendra Gupta, member of Mumbai Transport Forum, said, “The LBS stretch is poorly maintained especially near the BKC signal. People cannot walk on the footpaths because they are not maintained at all or they have been encroached upon.”