Mumbai: Political pressure grows to bring back Amar Mahal station

Proposed site where the Amar Mahal Junction Metro station would have come up

The issue surrounding the Amar Mahal station has taken on increasingly political overtones. Following the NCP's stance, Prakash Phatarpekar, the Shiv Sena (UBT) leader and local MLA from Chembur, has sent letters of appeal to Chief Minister Eknath Shinde and Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, urging the restoration of the station.

However, Phatarpekar appears to have misconstrued the situation, believing that the station has been relocated to Suman Nagar. In reality, both the Amar Mahal and Suman Nagar stations have been omitted. Despite this misunderstanding, Phatarpekar has raised valid concerns regarding commuters, local connectivity, and Chembur residents in light of the entire issue.

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Construction work near Amar Mahal. File pic

In his letter addressed to the CM and DCM, Phatarpekar stated, "While the Monorail terminates near Fine Arts Society Chembur, the Amar Mahal station would have significantly enhanced connectivity and aided commuters and local residents. Its inclusion would have been invaluable for those in my constituency travelling to Tilak Nagar, Ghatkopar Metro, Chembur East and West, and Ramabai Nagar. The removal of the station from the network renders it useless to everyone and must be reinstated at all costs for the locality's benefit."

Expressing concern over the impact of these decisions on easing commuting struggles in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR), Phatarpekar urged, "Despite the Metro network's promise to alleviate commuting challenges across the MMR, this action is unjust. I appeal for directives to be issued to the concerned officials to promptly reinstate this station."

Previously, the NCP had highlighted the station's issue, with NCP national spokesperson Clyde Crasto saying, "CM Eknath Shinde has recently eliminated several Metro stations within the Mumbai Metro network, including the Suman Nagar and Amar Mahal stations on the Mumbai Metro Green Line, spanning Wadala to Thane. Five stations have been dropped from the initial Metro network plan after construction had already commenced. This raises questions about the motives behind CM Eknath Shinde's decisions to remove Metro stations."

Shinde recently approved the removal of two stations, Suman Nagar and Amar Mahal, from the Green Line 4 map. MMRDA officials declined to comment or provide an official statement on the matter.

5
No. of stations dropped so far from the Metro network