BMC’s ₹53-Crore Gorai Parking Plan Faces Activist Opposition Over Green Land Acquisition

Mumbai: The BMC’s plan to acquire 9,712.70 sq m of land in Gorai for a public parking facility has triggered a sharp backlash from activists, who have questioned the use of Rs. 53 crore in civic funds to convert a green parcel into a parking lot primarily catering to visitors of nearby attractions.

Parking Facility Planned Near Tourist Spots

The proposed facility near the Global Vipassana Pagoda and Water Kingdom is intended to ease parking-related congestion in the area. The Mumbai Suburban Collector has issued a notification initiating the acquisition process. The BMC will bear the entire compensation cost, while possession of the land will be handed over to the civic body after the requisite legal process is completed.

Godfrey Pimenta, founder, Watchdog Foundation in his letter to the BMC Commissioner Ashwini Bhide and the state government has urged to withdraw or put the proposal on hold, calling the expenditure financially unjustified when Mumbai faces pressing needs in water supply, roads, healthcare and public transport.

Activists Question Use Of Taxpayers’ Money

Pimenta said the facility would primarily benefit visitors to the two attractions and argued that the beneficiaries or a public-private partnership should fund the project instead of taxpayers. He also called for greater financial discipline and transparency in major land acquisitions. Vinod Gholap, chairperson, Fight for Right Foundation slammed the proposal, saying that paving over green land in Gorai for parking defeats its ecological purpose and amounts to an unjustified use of civic funds.

Mumbai has more than 50 lakh registered vehicles, with nearly 728 new vehicles added every day, while parking infrastructure has failed to keep pace. The shortage has led to widespread roadside parking, with vehicles lining both sides of several roads. The BMC currently operates 37 authorised parking facilities with a combined capacity of 30,135 vehicles and plans to develop underground parking hubs beneath gardens and playgrounds to bridge the growing gap.

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