Mumbai: The much-hyped Worli-Haji Ali Sea
Link may be scrapped as the Maharashtra government seems to be
inclined towards building cheaper coastal roads as an
alternative to the expensive sea-links.
"Coastal roads are cheaper. Why should we go in for
sea-links (like Worli-Haji Ali)? We are discussing the coastal
road proposal with the Ministry of Environment and Forests
(MoEF)," Maharashtra Government`s chief secretary, Ratnakar
Gaikwad said at a seminar held here today.
The recent Coastal Regulation Zone norms, which have
come into effect, permit construction of coastal (or arterial)
roads on stilts.
The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation
(MSRDC), had, last year, signed a build-operate-transfer
concession agreement with the Anil Ambani-led firm Reliance
Infrastructure (RInfra) to construct the 8-lane Worli-Haji
Ali Sea-Link.
"Though some work on the project is on, the government
can still rethink over it and shift to the coastal road
alternative as it is much cheaper," Mumbai Transformation
Support Unit (MTSU) Project Director, U P S Madan said at the
seminar.
RInfra has formed a consortium with Hyundai
Engineering and Construction to construct the 5.5-km Sea-Link
at a cost of around Rs 5,100 crore.
"If the Ministry (of environment and forests) permits,
then we will take a call on how to execute it," Madan said.
PTI
