Mayor says Mumbai entry arches will come with parks, parking and privies

Mumbai: While the BMC budget document mentioned the construction of grand entrances and clock towers at various entry points to Mumbai, mayor Ritu Tawde on Tuesday stated that the grand entrances will not be limited to merely arches, and an all-inclusive civic amenity complexes will be built alongside the entrances. The facilities will include green zones and gardens, parking facilities, air-conditioned restrooms for women and men, and spaces for women's self-help groups, among other facilities. Tawde, on Tuesday conducted an inspection of the sites at Vashi, Airoli and Mulund nakas with a view to accelerating the construction of concept-based entry gateways and clock towers that represent Mumbai's identity at the entry routes into the Mumbai metropolis.The mayor noted during the inspection that the concept of entry gateways is not limited merely to arches and the objective is also to develop all-inclusive civic amenity complexes alongside them, thereby providing all facilities to citizens and tourists as well as generating permanent revenue from these complexes for the civic body. The mayor stated that the administration should commence work through time-bound planning and that a joint meeting of officials of all concerned departments would be organized soon to expedite the project. Tawde said that an inspection tour of Dahisar naka had been conducted earlier and the remaining three locations were inspected on Tuesday.Citizens, visitors and tourists entering Mumbai must feel Mumbai's identity through these gateways. Therefore, all these grand entrances will be based on social, cultural, economic, and other concepts related to Mumbai. Additionally, an all-inclusive complex will be created around these gateways comprising green zones and gardens, parking facilities, separate air-conditioned restrooms for women and men, spaces where Koli community members, women's self-help groups, and other entrepreneurs can set up stalls, digital hoardings, as well as solar energy projects will be part of the plan, the mayor said.Meanwhile, the BMC is also developing a transportation and commercial hub at Dahisar where the octroi naka was located. The transportation hub will accommodate interstate buses coming into the city. The hub will also have entertainment/recreational and retail space, apart from banquet halls and hotels. The BMC had earlier said the main objective of the transportation and commercial hub on the octroi naka sites at Dahisar and Mankhurd is to provide an integrated bus terminus, besides integrating it with the rest of the transport modes of the city like BEST and Metro.