MMRDA to spend R1.4 cr on shops for top brass

The largesse of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) towards its top brass shows no sign of waning. Zeeshan Shaikh reports.

The largesse of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) towards its top brass shows no sign of waning. After a Rs 15-crore residential tower and a Rs 1.2-crore gymnasium at Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC) for 30 of its top officials residing there, the latest proposal is to build shops at a cost of Rs 1.4 crore to cater to their grocery and laundry needs.

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Officials had spoken of being inconvenienced due to the lack of utility shops in the area.

Interestingly, even though there is a need for utility shops for other residents in the area, too, MMRDA has decided to construct the shops closer to Jetwan, the building that houses its top employees, including the metropolitan commissioner, who lives in a penthouse.

“We have decided to construct ten shops for the convenience of residents of the area as they have to travel to the nearby government colony or up to Kurla for their daily needs,” said MMRDA jt project director, Dilip Kawathkar. BKC is a commercial zone with a scattering of residential buildings. Very few people, apart from Bank of India officials and a few private residents, live here.

The shops will come up near the RBI building facing Bandra-Kurla Link Road, which is a stone’s throw from Jetwan. After construction, the shops will be leased to bidding vendors to set up shop.

This is not the first time the MMRDA has decided to spend money on its own officials. In March last year, the MMRDA had decided to build a Rs 1.20-crore gymnasium for the exclusive use of its 30 top officials. The idea was scrapped after public outcry.