Mumbai: The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) have joined forces to redevelop 15,000 slums dotting Ghatkopar's Ramabai Ambedkar Nagar and Kamraj Nagar. On Tuesday, both the agencies inked an agreement in the presence of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. In the presence of minister Shambhuraj Desai and key officials, the CM asked to constitute a special purpose vehicle for the execution of several projects.
To expedite the redevelopment of slums in Mumbai and clearance of encroachments around the Eastern and Western Express Highways, the state government has come up with the idea of making several key bodies – the BMC, its Thane counterpart, the City and Industrial Development Corporation and the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority – work in tandem. Under the ambitious plan, 2,000 slums along the Eastern and Western Express Highways will be cleared. A contract in this regard has already been done.
Revamping Of Thane Bus Depot
Another significant proposal is the revamp of Thane bus depots. The project-affected slum dwellers will be resettled on the government land around these bus stops, while the land freed from encroachment will be handed over to development authorities. Shinde said that the initiative aims to make Thane, his home turf, slum-free. To propel other works in the pipeline
Key Projects Fast-Tracked In Thane
Revised administrative permission has been granted to the Balkum-Gaimukh creek coastal road, extension of Eastern Freeway from Chheda Nagar, Ghatkopar, to Thane, construction of 8.25-km elevated road work from Anand Nagar, Eastern Express Highway to Saket. Other key projects to be fast-tracked include construction of road from Kasarvadavali, Thane, to Kharbao, Bhiwandi, Airoli-Katai Naka tunnel and Gaimukh-Payegaon creek bridge.
Pod taxi Services For BKC Commuters
The state government on Tuesday announced that a pod taxi service will be launched to ease commuting to the business hub of the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC). The MMRDA has approved a pod taxi service on the 8.8-km route between the Bandra and Kurla railway stations, read a statement from the chief minister's office. With a capacity of six passengers each, the pods will run at the speed of 40 km/hour and will have 38 halts. The project will be implemented on a public-private partnership basis.
