Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) on Friday February 27 hosted a high-level workshop on Station Area Development under Project-SMART (Station Area Development along the Mumbai–Ahmedabad High-Speed Rail corridor) at its Headquarters in Bandra-Kurla Complex. The workshop was organised in coordination with the Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs (MoHUA), Government of India, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) under the ongoing technical cooperation framework.
Four Maharashtra Stations on MAHSR Corridor
The MAHSR corridor comprises 12 High-Speed Rail stations, of which four — BKC, Thane, Virar and Boisar — are located in Maharashtra. Under Project-SMART, Thane and Virar have been selected for focused station area development planning to ensure that High-Speed Rail infrastructure acts as a catalyst for structured and sustainable urban growth.
During the workshop, JICA experts shared international best practices from Japan on transit-oriented development, land value capture, integrated mobility planning, environmental sustainability, stakeholder engagement and private sector participation in station-led regeneration. The Town Planning team of MMRDA and JICA experts deliberated on the Station Area Development Plans for Thane and Virar, including planning frameworks, implementation roadmaps and inter-agency coordination for the next phase.
Metropolitan Commissioner Directs Time-Bound Preparation
Following the deliberations, Dr Sanjay Mukherjee, IAS, Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA, conducted a comprehensive review with officials from MMRDA, Thane, Virar, NHSRCL and JICA. He directed time-bound preparation of integrated Station Area Development Plans aligned with High-Speed Rail growth principles and emphasised adoption of Transit-Oriented Development norms, land value capture strategies and seamless multimodal integration.
Mukherjee further directed that the learnings be extended to BKC and Boisar stations of bullet train to ensure that High-Speed Rail stations evolve as major growth centres of the MMR.
To get details on exclusive and budget-friendly property deals in Mumbai & surrounding regions, do visit: https://budgetproperties.in/
