Monorail phase II stuck for want of CR’s approval

“We are not setting deadlines yet,but the second phase should probably be operational a year after the commissioning of the first phase,” Metropolitan Commissioner Rahul Asthana said. “The proposals for the CR’s approval had been submitted last year. These things take time.”

Currently,the MMRDA is focusing on completing the Chembur-Wadala line after a year’s delay. The civil work on the line is expected to be finished by the end of July after which trial runs will start and the line will be commissioned by the end of this year.

For the Wadala-Jacob Circle line,the MMRDA will have to build the Monorail over tracks near Wadala and Curry Road stations. For the CR’s approval,the MMRDA needs to get the drawings and the launching scheme approved and then get railway blocks sanctioned to proceed with the construction. “An in-principle approval was given on the basis of general arrangement drawings and currently the launching scheme is under approval,” a CR spokesperson said.

In the past,approvals from railway authorities have held up several significant infrastructure projects such as the Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar Metro corridor and the much-delayed Santacruz-Chembur Link Road.

The MMRDA is also yet to complete the rehabilitation and land acquisition process for the second phase. Soon after the construction of the 8.3-km Chembur-Wadala Monorail route started in 2009,the MMRDA started work on the Wadala-Jacob Circle corridor,although the focus was more on the first line. By now,54 per cent of the civil work on the second phase has been completed. Nearly 63 per cent of the piles and 43 per cent of the pile caps are in place,an MMRDA official said.

Similarly,35 per cent of the piers have been cast and the casting of guideway beams,on which the rake runs,has started in a few places and construction of the stations will also start soon,he added.