Mumbai: Want monthly reports on Gokhale bridge work, demand Andheri residents

Residents of Andheri have demanded monthly progress reports of work on Gokhale bridge. In a closed-door meeting on Sunday, representatives of residents decided to approach Mangal Prabhat Lodha, guardian minister of Mumbai Suburban district in order to facilitate a meeting between Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) officials and residents.

The meeting was held at Shriniwas Bagarka Junior College at Chakala, Andheri East. "We will request the guardian minister to conduct a meeting with BMC officials and local residents to clear all the latter's doubts," said Dhaval Shah, an Andheri West resident.

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"We have also decided to demand that the BMC should share the progress reports every month, which will help us keep track of the work. First, the BMC declared that the first phase will be completed before monsoon. Now, we came to know it will be completed by November 2023. But we are not sure about this as we have not been getting information from the authorities," Shah stated.

Mohit Mehta, Andheri resident

Dinesh Mehta, another resident said, "Our demand is that the November deadline should be maintained. We have decided to talk to residents about the issue. This bridge is very important for us and lakhs of commuters. We will request residents to make public representatives aware of the importance of completing the bridge work."

Gurdeep Singh, an Andheri East resident, said, "We are spending more than an hour inside vehicles to make journeys that otherwise would have lasted five to ten minutes. The situation is bad for school students and senior citizens."

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He added, "During the monsoon, the situation will get worse. We hope the authorities manage things properly during the monsoon and complete the bridge work in time."

After closing down the Gokhale bridge, a vital Andheri east-west connector, on November 7 last year, the BMC had promised that the first phase of its reconstruction would be completed before the monsoon. Now it has been confirmed that the bridge work will be completed in November as there has been a delay in the assembly of girders.

Mohit Mehta, who was present at the meeting, said, "Whose fault is this? We are suffering a lot because of this delay. The BMC should think about how much we are enduring. There should be some accountability."