‘Want Metro-4 extension to go underground? Then pay for it’: MMRDA

MMRDA has already begun the construction work for the Wadala-Ghatkopar-Kasarvadavali route

Two government agencies have locked horns over the 8-km extension of the Metro-4 Wadala-Kasarvadavli line to GPO at Fort in south Mumbai.

Metro 4 work at Patlipada Ghodbunder road. (HT PHOTO)

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), which is executing the project, has written to the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT) to fund the work on the extended stretch that will be built via the MbPT land on the eastern waterfront. As MbPT’s demand that the stretch passing through its land be built underground will lead to cost escalation, MMRDA is asking them to bear the cost. However, MbPT officials have stated the port trust has no funds.

According to MMRDA, the estimated cost of elevated stretch will be approximately ₹300 crore for a km. “It will increase to ₹1,000 crore for a km, if we take it underground. So, we have asked MbPT to fund the work,” an official from MMRDA said.

MMRDA has already begun the construction work for the Wadala-Ghatkopar-Kasarvadavali route. The ₹15,498-crore project is expected to cater to 13.4 lakh people. The extension will make it the second corridor to operate from the southernmost part of the city. Metro-3, which is currently under-construction, will operate from Colaba in south Mumbai to Seepz in the western suburbs.

MbPT is currently carrying out a study on how its 550-hectare land parcel can be commercially exploited. They have envisaged revamp of the eastern waterfront into a hub of recreation and entertainment. It wants to make the eastern waterfront Mumbai’s “second Marine Drive.” Sanjay Bhatia, chairman, MbPT, said, “We don’t have funds for the project, but the stretch has to be underground. We will hold a meeting with MMRDA and the government to see what can be done about the issue.”