The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) will go on a spending spree, once again. After spending crores of rupees in building lavish apartments for its top officials near its headquarters at the Bandra-Kurla Complex (BKC), the MMRDA has now floated tenders for a state-of-the-art gymnasium to be constructed in the building housing the quarters.
The gymnasium will cost the MMRDA a whopping Rs1.21 crore, a source said. The authority is ready to foot the bill despite there being a high-quality gymnasium at the headquarters.
The MMRDA has constructed lavish 2,000 sq ft apartments for 31 top officials on the banks of the Mithi. The quarter complex has cost the authority Rs1.5 crore, and was recently inaugurated by chief minister Ashok Chavan.
When asked about the new gymnasium tender, MMRDA spokesperson Dilip Kawathkar said, “The top officials staying in the complex will need a good gymnasium. Moreover, the cost of Rs1.21 crore also includes major electrification work in the building.”
About a year ago, the MMRDA constructed a gymnasium in its headquarters. It had cost Rs10 lakh. The gymnasium is used by approximately 100 employees after the office hours. When DNA pointed out that the top MMRDA officers, too, could have used the gym, with their houses just a stone’s throw away from the office, the spokesperson chose to keep mum.
The metropolitan commissioner occupied his official penthouse last Saturday. Asked how he was living in a place where electrification work had not been completed, none of the MMRDA officials could come up with a logical answer.
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