Skywalks upkeep no cakewalk….MANASI PHADKE
Three years after first skywalk was thrown open to public, MMRDA struggles to maintain them
Three years after first skywalk was thrown open to public, MMRDA struggles to maintain them
Mumbai More than three years after the first skywalk was thrown open to public, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) does not have any provisions for the maintenance of the 36 pedestrian walkways constructed.
Several skywalks, including the one at Bandra (east) that was the first to be commissioned, are unkempt with garbage strewn on the sides, overflowing dustbins, the floor and the railings smeared with spit marks and missing tiles and seats.
Aishwarya Ketkar, a first-year student of economics, said the Thane skywalk, which was completed last year, is getting worse by the day. There are a lot of spit marks and garbage. Its more dirty these days because of the rains. Sometimes, there are stray dogs as well, Ketkar claimed. There is so much rush that regular cleaning is a must.
The MMRDA plans to issue tenders for sweeping and cleaning contracts within the next two weeks, an official in-charge of two skywalks said. There will be three contracts one each in the western suburbs, eastern suburbs and the island city.
Its unfortunate that newly-constructed structures get dirty, said Akshay Chuttar, an investment banker who uses the Bandra and Andheri skywalks frequently. There should be some kind of patrolling on the skywalks and monthly cleaning will be a good idea.
Several tiles and seats have been stolen and MMRDA tries to replace these whenever it gets specific complaints, an official said. The MMRDA has internally deployed security personnel to cover all skywalks round-the-clock in three shifts, but officials say the security rarely informs them about petty thefts.
Though we have appointed security personnel, they cant keep an eye on the entire stretch of 1 to 1.5 km skywalk, Superintending Engineer D U Gajbhiye said. Whenever we erect a new structure, maintenance becomes necessary. But a policy decision has not been taken yet.
In 2008, the MMRDA had tried to secure the skywalks by bundling advertising rights with maintenance work, but the strategy failed. Reliance Big Entertainment had quoted the highest price of Rs 79 crore to maintain the Bandra (East) skywalk for 10 years, but it did not even pay 10 per cent of what it had to pay upfront despite two extensions. MMRDA eventually terminated the contract in April 2009.