MMRDA may rope in IIT-B for MTHL

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) may appoint the Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IIT-B) as a third-party auditor in its design process, which will be prepared by the contractors for the construction of India’s longest proposed 22-km-long sea link between Sewri and Nhava-Sheva known as the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL).

Since the MTHL is a marine engineering project, the MMRDA wants to ensure that the designs involve key aspects such as safety given that the velocity of the wind in mid-sea would be very high.

An MMRDA official said, “We may appoint the IIT-B or some other private party as a third-party auditor who will ensure that the design of the whole bridge is safe for commuting. We need to ensure certain factors like the air turbulence and velocity are kept in mind when the design is prepared and executed for construction of the sea link.”

Currently, the MMRDA has begun the negotiation process with the shortlisted companies — L&T with IHI Japan, and Tata Projects with Daewoo Korea — which will construct the Rs 17,500-crore project. The Japanese International Cooperation Agency (JICA) is funding almost 85 per cent of the project cost of the MTHL.

“Negotiations are ongoing considering that the contractors have quoted more than the estimations of the MMRDA. We plan to award the project by November so that the work would start by December or January,” added an MMRDA official.