By: Brotin Banerjee, MD & CEO, Tata Housing
Track2Realty Exclusive: Mumbai, while being known for its ability to provide a livelihood for one and all, is infamous for having the highest population density in the world: close to 30,000 people per square kilometer, about three times that of Delhi.
With its local rail network, thousands of buses and millions of taxis and auto rickshaws, many consider Mumbai to be better planned than its urban counterparts. While Delhi, Bangalore and Kolkata might have the metro rail, its connectivity in each of these cities is far less than Mumbai’s rail. The experience of travelling in auto rickshaws in the former two is almost always termed nightmarish.
While the Delhi Metro Rail was a rare case of projects being on time, the same cannot be said for Mumbai’s Metro rail project, which is said to supplement the railway network. This project is divided into three phases: eight lines covering about 140 km by 2021.
The first line, Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar line, should be completed soon. After many delays, it is expected to be operational by early 2012. The other eight lines have not yet been given the green-signal. Even the new symbol of the city’s skyline, the Bandra Worli Sea Link, was about half-a-decade behind schedule.
While it is understandable that these world-class infrastructure projects involves investment from all concerned, what makes it complicated to get these projects on track is the involvement of multiple agencies, all vying to do their bit. A classic case of ‘too many cooks spoil the broth’.
In Mumbai alone, there are dozens. There’s Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (MHADA), the state Roadways Development Corporation (MSRDC).
…to be continued
