Mumbai’s Girgaum Chowpatty to get water sports, ferries and sea planes

The civic body has proposed to use part of the open space at the Chowpatty to build a jetty and a recreational centre.

Mumbai citizens are in for a treat if the plan of the civic body as well as the Mumbai Port Trust works out. The Girgaum Chowpatty is set to get fancier with water sports, sea planes and ferry services which will transport people to Gateway of India.

The Girgaum Chowpatty is set to get fancier with water sports, sea planes and ferry services which will transport people to Gateway of India. (HT File)

The civic body has proposed to use part of the open space at the Chowpatty to build a jetty and a recreational centre.

As a part of a developmental project by the Bombay Port Trust (BPT), about 2,791 sqm of Girgaum Chowpatty would be used as a recreational space for citizens as well as tourists in the future. Currently, this land next to the Marine Drive has an open theatre, eatery, education centre, meeting hall and gardens run by Birla Krida Kendra.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) had leased a total of 6,472 sqm of seaside land on the Chowpatty to the Kendra for public use. The BMC has now proposed to transfer part of this land to the BPT for setting up a multipurpose jetty. A BPT official, who did not wish to be named, said the project design is in the pipeline and would be finalized soon.

According to Prakash Gangadhare, ex-chairman of the BMC Improvement Committee and a BJP corporator, the new jetty can have sea planes and would enable inland waterways. “It is a multi-purpose project under the country’s shipping and water resources minister Nitin Gadkari. People will be able to travel to the Gateway of India and to the Western suburbs using the ferry service. The recreational space would also create employment,” said Gangadhare. The Improvement Committee on Wednesday decided to visit the site to for an inspection before allotting the space for the project. Anant Nar, chairman of the Committee, told HT, “We will inspect the space by January 12. We will decide how much space to use and how only after inspecting.”