COASTAL ROAD IS MUMBAI’S DREAM PROJECT: FADNAVIS

Mumbai: Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has assured that the coastal road project is on track and that it will be completed on a priority basis by the government. Fadnavis along with Chief Minister Eknath Shinde visited the field office of the coastal road project on Napean Sea Road to review its progress on Monday. Both top state ministers held discussions with the team executing the Rs12,000 crore project. Incidentally, this was Fadnavis and Shinde’s first visit to the project site after their government came to power on June 30 this year. Though the Shiv Sena has been terming coastal road as former CM Uddhav Thackeray’s dream project, Fadnavis on Monday termed it “Mumbai’s dream project.”

“We must understand that the idea of a coastal road along Mumbai’s waterfront is nearly 25 years old and could not become a reality in all these years. This happened because there was no law that allowed reclamation of coastal areas. When our government came to power in 2014, I personally went to Modiji (Prime Minister Narendra Modi), and pleaded our case. So, we worked for two years to get all the requisite permissions following which work has now begun on coastal road project,” Fadnavis told mediapersons. Dispelling any notions that their government would put spanners in the ongoing project work, the deputy CM said, “Chief Minister Eknath Shinde has given impetus to all infrastructure projects in the city which had either slowed down or stopped in the last two years. Today’s visit is part of speeding up the project. Though we are visiting the site now, three important meetings regarding the project were held in the CM). All hurdles in the path of this project have been cleared.” More than 60% of the coastal road project has been completed, with the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) reclaiming more than 97% out of 111 hectare of land required for the project. More than 70% construction of the sea wall has been finished as well. Other attractions that will be added to the project include a biodiversity park, butterfly garden, cycle tracks, open-air theatres, among others.