Now get a feel of New York's Times Square sitting right here in amchi Mumbai. The Union tourism ministry on Friday unveiled plans to develop Kala Ghoda as an open air "cultural hub" along the lines of the iconic public square in the Big Apple.
Cost of the project?
The central ministry would be partnering with the government of Maharashtra's department of tourism on the project, contributing Rs5 crore in phase 1 of the project with similar amounts for every subsequent phase. This would be over and above what the state government would spend in creating the basic infrastructure to create incentives for the private sector to invest in the project, the ministryc release said.
What are its features?
While Kala Ghoda has been fixed on as the location for this heritage and culture hub, the exact location, such that there is no disturbance to traffic, is yet to be decided.
The Kala Ghoda Times Square-clone will attempt to provide popular entertainment as well as access to heritage and culture for international and domestic tourists and Mumbaikars. Some of the features of the project are a 15-foot high flag of India, made of hard transparent materials and lit from within, providing a photo-opp to visitors, just as the US flag does in Times Square.
What's the plan?
Then, there'll be large electronic billboards for advertisements. The plans include paving the entire pedestrian area with stone slabs, constructing amphitheatre-like steps for visitors to sit on like at Times Square, and drinking water fountains with RO water. The government also plans to install high resolution web cams/CCTVs, to beam live photographs of visitors sitting on the benches on gigantic screens, along with live streaming on the internet.
Other plans include street performances and having film and cartoon characters mill about at Kala Ghoda providing visitors with photo opportunities.
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