Mumbai Metro line 2B in BKC to shift for Thackerays' safety

While MMRDA did not budge at all for a holy structure like the Atash Behram they have readily made changes in the alignment of Line 2B DN Nagar to Mandale to not stand in the way of Shiv Sena chief Uddhav Thackerays under construction Matoshree 20 The line has been shifted around 1014 metres away from the median of the BKC road where it was previously supposed to pass fromThe construction of a sevenstorey building being referred to as Matoshree 20 in Sena circles spread over 10000 sq ft is nearing completion in Kalanagar Bandra East The building is coming up opposite Thackerays current residence Matoshree and also has an entrance from the BKC sideThe construction of a sevenstorey building being referred to as Matoshree 20 in Sena circles is nearing completion in Kalanagar PicRane AshishDidnt want to face delaysThe decision to shift the alignment was taken over a month ago A source from MMRDA said As per the earlier plans the Metro line 2A and the BKC flyover were passing via the median of the BKC road over one another But changes have been made in the Metro alignment as it passes in front of the Sena chiefs under constructionbuildingWe did not want the project to face any delays if any safetyrelated problems were to come up also there were issues related to the construction of the Metro station on the northbound stretch of the BKC road near the family court junction Taking all of these important things into consideration it was decided that the alignment of the Metro line 2B will be shifted around 1014 meters away from the median and will now pass close to the southbound footpath between BKC junction and family court junctionAlso ReadResidents suffer as well water levels dip around Metro tunnelAaditya and Uddhav ThackeraySources added that the alignment was also facing issues due to the current landing of the skywalk which is why shifting it to the other side would help in carrying out the work without any problemAnother source said The to and fro stretch of the flyover will have view cutters and noise barriers Around three weeks ago MMRDA even moved the barricades kept at the median of the BKC road between BKC junction and family court junctionAlso ReadSleek swank smooth New trains arrive for Navi Mumbai metroOther citizens ignoredMMRDA seems to have not shown the same consideration to issues being raised by citizens living along other Metro corridors The most prominent example of the same being the refusal to budge for the Metro 3 line which is going to pass below the Parsi communitys holy Atash Behrams The Parsi community went as far as the Supreme Court to put forward their case of the construction being damaging for the temples but the tunnelling for the project was allowed to continueReacting to the 2B alignment Noshir Dadrawala one of the trustees of the Bombay Parsi Punchayet said This clearly shows that for MMRDA politicians are a higher priority than the religious sentiments of an entire community They would rather upset the minority than a political lobby Destroying the religious sanctity of structures of the Parsi community that is causing the well water to deplete was conveniently done in the name of development but someones security has suddenly become a more important concernThe demands of citizens residing along the New Link road in the western suburbs between Juhu and Bandra to make the 2B line underground have also not been considered Meanwhile Ghatkopar residents and members of the Ghatkopar Peoples Forum have also been demanding a partial change in the alignment of the WadalaThaneKasarvadavli line 4 to make it pass through the Eastern Express Highway but alignment has been refused for that as wellNot ready to listenJuhu resident and architect Nitin Killawalasaid BKC has a wide road and no residences along the alignment Were demanding an underground Metro which had been previously approved by MMRDA Moreover elevated metros on Mumbai roads are not possible if legal and safety regulations are to be adhered toActivist and filmmakerAshoke Pandit said This change in alignment in BKC proves that the entire overhead 2B Metro has been planned without any application of the mind We have been raising the issue of the illplanned 2B Metro for which no proper permissions have been taken They are not ready to listen to the citizens and hence have created a mess and been stopped by the courtsInputs by Arita SarkarThe Metro 2B line All you need to knowThe Metro Line 2B from D N Nagar to Mandale stretches along 23643 km It will be an elevated corridor with 22 stationsIt will provide connectivity along the Western and Eastern Express Highways Western Railway Central Railway Monorail Metro Line 1 Ghatkopar to Versova Line 2ADahisar to D N Nagar Metro Line 4 Wadala to Kasarvadavali and Metro Line 3 Colaba to SEEPZA dedicated depot is being planned at Mandale spread over 22 hectaresThe line would reduce the current travel time between 50 per cent to 75 per centAlso ReadWhy not work on Bal Thackeray flyover extension too civic body asks MMRDACatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates