Pedder Rd flyover faces new roadblock

MoEF has asked MSRDC to conduct fresh public hearing

The flyover is likely to bring this speed up to 40 kmph.

Despite an expert committee of the Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) having recommended the controversial Pedder Road flyover for an environment clearance in November last year, the project, which has been stuck for more than a decade, has now hit a fresh hurdle.

In a recent letter to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC), the MoEF has said while the flyover has been recommended for clearance, the corporation should conduct another public hearing, given that residents along the alignment have been vociferously against it. The MSRDC has conducted two public consultations for the project in the past.

The 4.1-km flyover, which the state government had first proposed in 2000, has been embroiled in controversy since its inception, with high-profile residents including personalities such as singers Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhosale opposing it.

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Anil Diggikar, vice-chairman and managing director at MSRDC, said, “A public hearing cannot be held at this stage with elections coming up. We have written to the MoEF saying that we have conducted two public hearings in this case, given them a background of what happened, and requested that they allow us to go ahead. We are awaiting their reply.”

A senior MSRDC official said in all likelihood, the MoEF will take cognizance of the corporation’s letter only after elections are over and the government has been formed.

The last time the MSRDC conducted a public hearing was in July 2011. The meeting ended abruptly due to verbal clashes between residents opposed to the project and those supporting it. The situation was similar during the first public meeting in March 2008.

Those disapproving of the viaduct argue that a flyover on the narrow and congested Pedder Road will increase air and noise pollution in the area. The construction of the flyover will also worsen traffic along the road and hit vehicular movement between south Mumbai and the western suburbs.

manasi.phadke@expressindia.com

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