Mumbai: Kalwa-Airoli rail project may face further delays due to slum rehabilitation concerns

The slum cluster adjoining Kalwa railway station, which is holding up the long-awaited Kalwa-Airoli rail project. Pics/Rajendra B Aklekar

The stranded Kalwa-Airoli rail project that will connect Kalyan and Navi Mumbai, directly avoiding Thane station, benefiting lakhs of commuters, may get delayed further with Jitendra Awhad, who represents the Mumbra-Kalwa Assembly segment, saying on Wednesday he had been blocking the project since 2017 and would continue to do so if the 3600 slum dwellers residing at the site are displaced.

"We are not against the project, but yes, we have stalled it since 2017, as the affected families are being rehabilitated at places like Thane and Waghbil. The families are my votebank. They are very poor, and after being displaced like this, they will be jobless. The Thane Municipal Corporation, after discussing the matter with the civic chief, sent me a letter on Tuesday seeking that a survey of the area be carried out. But we will not allow any survey to happen till every single family member gets a written assurance that they will be rehabilitated at the very same place," Awhad said.

Project details

The new suburban railway corridor between Airoli and Kalwa will allow trans-harbour trains to bypass Thane station, taking off major load. Work is divided into two phases. Phase I included the work of the Dighe Gaon station, which has been completed. Phase 2 includes work on the corridor, where this issue has come up.

The elevated link will enable direct trains from Vashi-Belapur to the Kalyan side. The rail flyover has been planned with ballastless track and the construction of an elevated Kalwa station, including platforms, a booking office, connected foot underbridges, staircases, and related works. Providing this direct line connecting Airoli and Kalwa would not only decongest Thane junction but also decrease travel time for the passengers commuting from the Navi Mumbai side to the MMR region towards Kalwa and beyond.

As of today, no direct rail connection exists between Kalwa and Airoli; passengers require a connection in Thane station. Introducing a rail link between these two cities would act as a bypass for Thane station and could significantly reduce its congestion.

Overcrowding issue

As per data available, the Kalwa-Diwa stretch is the most railway accident-prone area on CR due to a paucity of adequate public transport. Despite safety improvements, the Kalwa and Mumbra areas continue to suffer from severe overcrowding on local trains.

Voices

Siddhesh Desai, Mumbai Rail Pravasi Sangh
‘For years, residents, commuters, activists have asked: When will the Kalwa-Airoli Link be completed? Every month of delay is a gamble with human lives. Every accident is not just ‘data' - it's devastating trauma for families, social breakdown, and economic ruin. We appeal to every political leader, civic authority, and policy-maker to prioritise human life over procedural delays or petty politics. This is not a votebank issue. This is not about credit or image. This is about saving lives - today. Let us come together with compassion, urgency and resolve, and deliver on the promise of safer transport and a chance at life for thousands'

Advocate Deepak Dubey, Dombivli-based advocate whose brother, Avadhesh, lost his life falling from an overcrowded train
‘The high number of commuters and limited services create a deadly situation at Kalwa and Mumbra, where the number of commuters is almost double the capacity of trains. Why does the Mumbra-Diva stretch remain a death trap despite repeated accidents?'

Madhu Kotian, Veteran passenger activist
‘The Thane railway station - a key hub for the corridor - regularly handles around six to seven lakh passengers daily. This massive and growing ridership - especially from suburbs like Kalwa, Mumbra, Diva, Diva-Mumbra corridor - makes the demand for safe, reliable transit urgent and unavoidable. The tragic loss of young railway commuters along this corridor has devastated families emotionally and financially. When a young earning member of a family loses his life on railway tracks, the family collapses - emotionally, socially, and economically. Their rehabilitation is impossible - life does not get a second chance'