Mumbai Metro. (Express Photo/Amit Chakravarty/File)
THE Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation (MMRC) has said that the proposed Metro station at Aarey will serve two Metro rail routes. In addition to the underground Colaba-Bandra-SEEPZ corridor (Metro Line 3), the station is also meant to serve as an interchange for another elevated Metro route, the Metro Line 6, proposed to connect Swami Samarth Nagar in Andheri to Vikhroli.
“The proposed station at Aarey will also provide an interchange with the proposed Swami Samarth Nagar-JVLR-SEEPZ-Kanjurmarg-Vikhroli (EEH) Metro corridor (Line 6). The detailed project report for Line 6, prepared by the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, has a station at SEEPZ village for the interchange with the underground route,” states an affidavit filed by the MMRC in the Bombay High Court.
Further, in response to the petitioner’s contention that “there are no buildings or habitation in the vicinity to necessitate/ warrant a Metro station at Aarey”, the MMRC’s affidavit, filed by its Chief Project Manager Charuhas Jadhav, states, “The proposed Metro station is only about 170 metre away from the main Jogeshwari Vikhroli Link Road and cannot be brought closer in view of the boundaries of the existing electric sub-station. This Metro station will serve as a very important multi-modal interchange point to service densely populated areas of Powai, Andheri (E), Chandiwali, Vikhroli, Kanjurmarg, Jogeshwari (E) and other localities in the vicinity.”
But activists have raised doubts over the claim. “There is nothing near Aarey to warrant a Metro station. The SEEPZ station proposed for Line 6 can easily serve the populace. They do not need another station for this,” said Zoru Bhathena, an activist who has been opposing the construction of the Metro-3 car depot in Aarey Colony. MMRC officials refused to comment.
Best of Express Premium
- The Indian Express website has been rated GREEN for its credibility and trustworthiness by Newsguard, a global service that rates news sources for their journalistic standards.
