After Aaditya Thackeray ‘inaugurates’ second arm of Delisle bridge in Lower Parel, BMC says work pending

On Friday, the BMC said that though work on the second lane of the Delisle bridge is nearing completion, final works involving the installation of signals, street lights, lane marking as well as painting work is underway. Stating that the work will be completed in the next three to four days, a bulletin released Friday said, “All roads will be open to traffic as soon as signal system, street lights, lane marking and similar important works are completed.”

According to senior officials, the bridge has two arms with two lanes on each side. While the bridge has become partially operational, the BMC is eyeing to make the entire bridge operational by next week.

One lane of the bridge connecting GK Marg in Lower Parel towards NM Joshi Marg towards Currey Road was launched on June 1. Another lane connecting Currey Road to Lower Parel was opened on September 19. On completion of all the works, movement of vehicles will be allowed in both directions,  bringing huge relief to commuters travelling in South Mumbai.

On being asked about the ongoing works, senior civic officials said the up and down girders on Joshi Marg had been laid in Aug-ust. Following the girder launch, the BMC started working on concretisation, ramps as well as the pedestrian pathways among other works. “The last phase of asphalting was completed on November 10,” said officials.

Late on Thursday, senior Shiv Sena UBT leaders, including MLA Aaditya Thackeray, Mumbai mayors Kishori Pednekar and Snehal Ambekar and other activists, “inaugurated” the bridge claiming that it had not been opened, despite completion of works.

Following the BMC announcement, Aaditya reiterated that the bridge had not been made operational even as the work had been completed 10 days ago as the government was awaiting a VIP to inaugurate it.

Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Thackeray wrote, “We inaugurated it last night and today, the BMC under the pressure of Khoke Sarkar has closed it down again, waiting for a govt inauguration, only to trouble the citizens of Mumbai. Why can’t it be thrown open for the people instead of waiting for the guardian minister’s ego and convenience? Open it!”

A British-era structure, the decision to pull down the Delisle bridge was taken after a structural audit, carried out on all the bridges in Mumbai following the collapse of Gopal Krishna Gokhale bridge in Andheri, found that the bridge was unfit.