Goregaon-Mulund Link Road: Now, a box tunnel under Film City to connect tunnel under SGNP
The BMC made the changes in the design after the Film City administration opposed the original plan on the ground that a busy road through the green belt would interfere with their plans for film sets.
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MAKING further changes to the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road project, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has now decided to construct a box tunnel running through the Film City area. The move will increase the cost of the Rs 2,500-crore project by another Rs 700 crore. The BMC made the changes in the design after the Film City administration opposed the original plan on the ground that a busy road through the green belt would interfere with their plans for film sets.
Municipal officials said the revised proposal includes a 1.6-km box tunnel underground. A slab will be placed above the tunnel so that the land over it can be utilised. “Constructing a road through the Film City was dividing their land into two parts and the land was losing its value. We have now decided to construct a box tunnel, which will be six metres below ground level, running 150 feet wide. This tunnel will connect to the 4.7-km tunnel running under the Sanjay Gandhi National Park,” said a senior civic official.
The official added that the proposal had been submitted to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis’s war-room and had received a preliminary nod. The proposed alignment of the 16-km east-west corridor will begin at Oberoi Mall and end at the Eastern Express Highway near Nahur railway station. The project includes a 4.7-km six-lane tunnel beginning at Film City in Goregaon and ending at Khindipada in Bhandup.
During earlier discussions held in May, Film City officials had demanded that the entire stretch be constructed underground.
Even as the cost of the project continues to escalate, the BMC is yet to receive approvals from the Ministry of Environment and Forests. Owing to the delay, work will not begin until late next year.
While the BMC will send its response later this week, the impact assessment study will be conducted by the civic body’s consultant after the MoEF gives the terms of reference. “The assessment report will take around six months and after it is submitted, we will apply for clearance for the entire project. The final approval to the project will be given depending on the findings of the report,” said the official.
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