The thousands using Parel station in one of the most trying suburban commuting conditions in the city, have much to worry about. The Parel suburban terminus plan is now mired in confusion, and officials believe it would be several years before any kind of relief comes this way.
The thousands using Parel station in one of the most trying suburban commuting conditions in the city, have much to worry about. The Parel suburban terminus plan is now mired in confusion, and officials believe it would be several years before any kind of relief comes this way.
For the past three to four years, a section of Central Railway officials believed Parel terminus, despite being part of the 5th and 6th lines layout between Kurla and CST, could come up independent of the big project.
However, at the moment, the thinking in the railway ministry is that Parel terminus will only come up if the 5th and 6th lines cannot be built all the way to CST because of land acquisition problems between Byculla and CST.
This position was first highlighted by Railway Board member (Traffic) DP Pande at a press interaction on November 27, and later by Prabhat Sahai, chairman, Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation (MRVC) at a press briefing on January 13.
Sahai told the media that a plan to tide over the land problems between Byculla and CST, by utilising Port land closer to P D'mello Road to shift the Harbour Line between Sandhurst Road and CST, had been sent to Rani Jadhav Committee, which is looking into ways to redevelop Mumbai Port Trust land. If the plan works out, the two Harbour lines between Sandhurst Road and CST would be used as the 5th and 6th lines.
"The problem is that this alternative – using Port land to get Harbour Line to take a detour – could take several years to materialise, as it involves Port land and a lot of heavy-duty engineering. So, till we know whether the alternative plan is a success or not, there will be no movement on the work on Parel terminus," said a senior CR official.
As far as CR is concerned, Parel terminus project is part of the 5th-6th line work. Several officials who spoke to DNA reiterated that Railway Board had sent no official communication on the new conditions pertaining to the terminus.
"The total estimate of the 5th-6th line project sanctioned by the then railway minister, Sadananda Gowda, was Rs 900 crore, and it includes Rs 80 crore for the Parel terminus. We are unaware whether the Parel terminus plan is only if the 5th-6th lines cannot be taken all the way to CST," said a CR official.
"If the Railway Board is unsure about the Parel terminus project, it should do something in the short-term for the people who have to go through the horrors of alighting and boarding at Parel. Railways should widen platform 1/2 as well as south-end FOB and its flight of stairs. Or else, the nightmare (for thousands working in offices around Parel) would continue," said Bhandup resident Manish Chaturvedi.
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