After the BMC cracked the whip and asked organisers of the Mumbai marathon to pay up, the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) has followed suit.
Though the organisers say the event is for charity, officials of the MSRDC, which owns the 4.7km-long Bandra-Worli Sea Link, have made it clear that they will not let it be used free.
“We have already received a letter from the event organisers regarding use of the sea link for a marathon in January next year,” a senior MSRDC official said. “We have told them that they will have to pay Rs20 lakh for a day’s loss of toll. Moreover, they will need to pay an additional deposit of Rs20 lakh.”
According to a source in the corporation, the organisers were trying to push the state public works department (PWD) to allow free use of the sea link. “There was a meeting in Mantralaya on the issue on Wednesday wherein the MSRDC top brass made it clear that the sea link should not be used for such events on a regular basis,” said a PWD source.“Additional chief secretary (home) Chandra Iyengar said the sea link should not be made a regular spot for celebrity events.”
Asked whether the marathon will take the sea link route, Procam director Bruno Goveas said, “We have sent a formal letter to the state government seeking permission. But we are yet to get a final answer.”
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