Mantralaya revamp hits roadblock,this time from traffic cops

Police object to grand steps leading up to the building and plan to shift gate

The ambitious Rs 138-crore Mantralaya makeover project has hit a stumbling block,with Mumbai traffic police raising objections to the plans drafted by architecture firm Raja Adaeri. According to state government sources,the polices objections had put one of the architectural highlights of the project the grand steps leading up to the façade in jeopardy.

To accommodate the width of the steps similar to those at the Asiatic Library the architect has proposed shifting one of the main Mantralaya gates around 15 metres to its left (in the direction of Oval Maidan). The traffic police,however,have objected to the move,stating that the traffic flow in the area would be disrupted.

To accommodate the new gate,a traffic signal at Jagannath Bhosale Marg will have have to be shifted accordingly,traffic police said. In addition,a road median at the junction will have to be shortened for straight entry into the new gate from across

the street.

The Maharashtra PWD,however,is adamant on going ahead with the architects current plan. We are going to go ahead with the existing plan as we do not want to compromise on the width of the grand steps. The grandness and visual appeal of the new Mantralaya will be completely lost if the width of the steps is reduced. We are in talks with the traffic police,and the issue will be sorted out, said a PWD official. Sources told Newsline that traffic police have also raised serious concerns about the movement of heavy construction vehicles such as cement mixers and dumpers into Mantralaya.

There is constant movement of heavy vehicles while construction work is on at Mantralaya,and this poses potential security problems in the entry and exit of the Chief Minister and Deputy Chief Minister in particular. There are also issues of intersecting traffic paths,and unrealistic turning spaces for vehicles that have been marked out in the plan, said

a source.

PWD officials,however,said the concerns of traffic police were only limited to the repositioning of one of the Mantralaya gates.

While Joint Commissioner of Police (Traffic) Vivek Phansalkar did not wish to comment on the issue,architect Raja Adaeri said he was not authorised by the state government to discuss issues pertaining to the plan.

sagnik.chowdhury@expressindia.com

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