MMRDA looks to raise ₹16,577 crore for 2 projects linking Thane and Mira-Bhayandar

Mumbai: The debt-laden Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) is looking to raise ₹16,577 crore for two projects linking Thane and Mira-Bhayandar: a tunnel from Gaimukh to the Fountain Hotel junction at Shilphata, and tunnel and a creek bridge connecting Bhayandar to Ghodbunder Road. “We have floated an expression of interest for loans from financial institutions,” said an MMRDA official.

These will be the third and fourth infrastructure projects linking the regions on either side of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park after the Borivali-Thane twin tunnel and the double-decker Metro 10, which will run above an elevated road planned between Gaimukh and Fountain Hotel.

The Gaimukh-Fountain Hotel junction tunnel will be 5.5 km long, including 2 km of approach roads. It will have six lanes, three in each direction. This project, which currently has an estimated cost of ₹20,000 crore, was approved in July by chief minister and MMRDA chairman Eknath Shinde.

The Bhayandar-Ghodbunder Road creek bridge will be 9.8 km long and have four lanes on either side. It will be connected with the proposed tunnel on one side and the Bandra-Versova-Mira Bhayandar sea link to form a ring road network.

As of June, MMRDA was saddled with a debt of ₹1,03,622 lakh crore. In mid-September, the authority signed a loan agreement with the Power Finance Corporation (PFC) to avail ₹31,674 crore for nine infrastructure projects to improve the connectivity of Thane with various neighbouring areas of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR).

The nine projects to be funded by PFC are the Balkum-Gaimukh Thane Coastal Road (Phase I), the Eastern Freeway extension, an elevated road from National Highway 4 to Katai Naka, the Thane-Bhiwandi creek bridge between Kolshet and Kalher, the Kasarvadavali-Kharbao creek bridge, an elevated road between Kalyan-Murbad Road and Badlapur, an elevated road from Anand Nagar to Saket, the Thane-Borivali twin tunnel and the Gaimukh-Payegaon creek bridge.

Except for the Thane-Borivali twin tunnel, the other eight projects were approved by the MMRDA’s executive committee on September 4, ahead of the announcement of the model code of conduct for the Maharashtra assembly elections.

From the PFC’s funding, MMRDA seeks to achieve financial closure soon to cover 80% of the expenditure for the nine projects. The balance amount will be drawn from a combination of government grants and internal accruals.