This is because, Metro-2B will pass through the median of BKC, that is the central divider of the road, and the Smart BKC features are proposed to be installed on the median
Poor planning has left officials of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) in a dilemma, as two projects proposed by the agency— the 'Smart BKC' project and the DN Nagar-BKC-Mandale Metro-2B project — have clashed with each other, forcing it to rethink the former project.
Almost three years after conceptualisation, designing and tendering of a project to turn Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) into a mini smart city, the project will now remain in limbo, as MMRDA officials have realised that its proposed features such as Wi-Fi hotspots, solar powered street lights and advanced CCTV cameras will now have to make way for the proposed Metro-2B project.
This is because, Metro-2B will pass through the median of BKC, that is the central divider of the road, and the Smart BKC features are proposed to be installed on the median. This has resulted in the alignment of the Metro-2B project clashing with the Smart BKC plan.
"We are working with new designs and plans, that will have to be tweaked accordingly as we have realised that Metro-2B is going to pass through the median of BKC and utilities for Smart BKC project, too, were also planned on the median. We will have to plan the proposed utilities for the Smart BKC project on the road sideways now," said a senior MMRDA official.
The MMRDA official added that after incorporating the required changes, the agency was going to issue fresh bids anytime soon for the project. However, the MMRDA official claimed it has managed to save Rs 30 crore by tweaking the designs in advance, unlike in the case of a previous goof-up.
The Metro-2B project earlier, too, had clashed with an MMRDA project to construct a maze of flyovers, between BKC and Bandra-Worli Sea Link and between BKC and Dharavi, to decongest Kalanagar Junction. After awarding the project earlier this year, MMRDA tweaked the designs of one of these flyovers after its contractors realised that the BKC arm of the flyover was criss-crossing with the alignment of the proposed Metro corridor.
Meanwhile, MMRDA had earlier tendered the project in late 2015 and awarded the project to Reliance Infrastructure for design, development, implementation, operation and maintainance basis for around Rs 75 crore. However, R-Infra walked out of the project in August 2016, claiming that it did not receive any formal intimation or letter of intent from the MMRDA.
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