Ahead of G20 summit, Eknath Shinde to launch 187 projects today to beautify Mumbai

The announcement was made by the Chief Minister’s Office on Wednesday, after Shinde reviewed works taken up under the Mumbai Beautification Project. At the review meeting, municipal commissioner Iqbal Singh Chahal made a presentation to Shinde on the project.

The CM directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to take up beautification works on war footing. “In the last four months, the Mumbai Beautification Project has been fast tracked,” a statement from the CMO said.

It added, “The first sessions of the G20 summit will take place in Mumbai. This is a matter of pride for our city. Mumbai must be prepared and we will be giving it a facelift and rebranding the city in preparation for the sessions.”

Shinde had earlier said that 14 meetings of the G20 summit will be held in Mumbai, Pune, Nagpur and Sambhaji Nagar (Aurangabad).

The CM on Wednesday also directed the BMC to appoint 5,000 sanitation workers and prioritise cleanliness in preparation for the G20 summit. While beaches, public toilets and roads will be cleaned daily, important buildings will be illuminated and crucial roads, junctions, flyovers and skywalks will be beautified on mission mode, the statement said.

The civic body has been directed to speed up construction of toilets and prioritise building smart toilets on the eastern and the western expressways. Slum areas are likely to get community washing machines as well.

BJP Mumbai president Ashish Shelar, who was present at the meeting, said, “On Thursday, bhoomi pooja of one of the beautification projects will take place at the Gateway of India at the hands of the CM and the deputy CM, marking the launch of the other 186 projects as well.”

For Gateway of India, the BMC plans to beautify the Gateway precinct as well as roads and footpaths. Tenders for the project were floated approximately three months ago.