Mumbai: Metro dividers to make way for Ganpati's smooth and safe journey

Traffic police, MMRC and BMC officials at a joint inspection of a Metro-3 construction site in Girgaon on Saturday. Pic/Bipin Kokate

Hundreds of Ganpati mandals can now heave a sigh of relief after the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRC), traffic police and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) agreed to clear metro obstructions and widen roads to make way for idols. Now, barricades installed for the ongoing Metro-3 (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz) work will be either removed or pushed behind, to decongest the road for smooth movement of idols. Earlier, many ganpati mandals had complained about the narrowed-down streets due to the metro work, which will lead to obstruction in carrying Ganpati idols on a trolley.

Traffic police, MMRC and BMC officials at a joint inspection of a Metro-3 construction site in Girgaon on Saturday. Pic/Bipin kokate

On Saturday, these decisions were taken after a joint inspection by the Brihanmumbai Sarvajanik Ganeshotsav Samanvay Samiti (BSGSS), BMC, traffic police and MMRC. According to BSGSS office bearers, as August 26 is a Sunday and a holiday, metro officials will remove or reduce the number of barricades, especially in areas such as Girgaon, Grant Road and Worli.

"The MMRC has also agreed to fill the potholes on their site. For the arrival of processions, we need road width of at least 25 feet. We will also request all the big mandals to take the idols to their pandals on August 26, as it's a holiday. The MMRC, BMC and traffic police will make arrangements for smooth entry in congested lanes, especially in Girgaon," said Naresh Dahivbavkar, executive president of BSGSS. The BSGSS and government agencies have been at loggerheads for the last two weeks, over this issue.

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