Reliance Infrastructure to give face-lift to 'Smart BKC' project

The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority MMRDA has awarded Reliance Infrastructure over Larsen and Toubro L ampT the contract to convert central business district of BandraKurla Complex BKC into Smart BKC projectThe project has been awarded to Reliance Infrastructure as its bid was lowest than Larsen and Toubro L ampT The project implementation would start in next 68 months once we get formal approval from executive committee said a source from MMRDAThe sources told this newspaper that Reliance Infrastructure had quoted Rs 75 crore and LampT had quoted Rs 107 croreBKC will be made WiFi enabled as a part of MMRDAS Smart BKC project People would be able to use WiFi free for 30 minutes As a part of smart BKC project there would also be smart street lights CCTV camera surveillance mobile application based address finder and many other new facilitiesThe main reason why MMRDA wants to turn BKC to a smart city is because it is already a commercial hub and it was developed to create a stateofan art financial and business hub The basic motive behind the creation of BKC was to decentralise the hub like South Mumbai Nariman PointDue to its close proximity to the international and domestic airport from both Eastern and Western Express Highway the BKC has been growing as a most popular destination among national and international companies for setting up their offices which is why it is also known as the central business district of Mumbai The better quality of roads in the complex ensure faster commute and so a number of big corporate houses and even the consulate offices are now shifting to the complexTaking a clue from this expansion and growing importance of the new commercial hub which is shaping up in BKC the concept of Smart BKC was introduced by MMRDA in the complex This would include harnessing the role of information and communications technologies in the district to transform the hub into tech savvy and modern business district Our vision of smart BKC is in line with governmentrsquos initiatives of smart cities said a senior MMRDA officialAs per the plan these are initiatives that will be implemented while implementing the smart BKC project which includes1 Providing WiFi The entire BKC area will be made WiFi enabled and so the people coming to the central business district will be able to use the services free of cost for first half an hour2 Smart Parking The parking in BKC has been one of the important issue and so as per the plans the motorists or people coming to BKC will be able to get a real time information about the status of 2844 parking spaces that are operational at 12 locations in BKC The person would get information about the same on the smart BKC portal and the mobile application that would be designed3 Citizens application A citizens application related to BKC would be designed which would help people coming to BKC to get information about the hotels offices and various places in BKC The mobile application based address finder would help the people in reaching the right address and people would save a lot of time4 Integrated Building Monitoring System The above system will help in monitoring the amount of water and electricity consumption of every building and through a central command center the ways to save electricity and water would also be discussed5 Smart street lights and CCTV Camera At present there are 815 electricity poles in BKC which have over 1300 sodium vapour light Through a system the amount of light that each lamp emits would be adjusted as per the atmosphere and this would help in saving a lot of electricity Over 150 high definition CCTV cameras would be installed in BKC to keep a tab on each and every movement thus making it more safer The cameras would be connected to the main police control room of Mumbai The information of any accidents or emergency would be forwarded to the nearest police station and government hospital6 Electric Hybrid buses As a part of the smart BKC project MMRDA would have 25 electric buses in a bid to ease commuting woes in BKC The buses will be provided at a cost of Rs53 crore by the lowest bidder MsTata Motors PvtLtd The Complex has been the centre of attention for a number of activities and the demand for bus service was echoing for some time and has also been seconded by the BKC Plot Ownersrsquo Association The provision of bus service is also a part of Smart BKC Project said an MMRDA officialBKC and the areaThe two prominent blocks the 170 Ha G block and 25 Ha E block together have approximately 64 lakh employees in various establishments At present the available office space is also 640 lakh sq meters There is quite a bit of open space commonly known as MMRDA grounds which is MMRDAs land bankIt should be noted that the complex also has staff quarters clubs 5 star hotels convention complex hospitals apart from offices houses and a number of financial and business houses including National Stock Exchange SEBI and various national private banks schools Mumbai Cricket Associations cricket ground and the Consulates of United States of America United Kingdom Australia and France