Committee stands against Gateway renovation plan
The Rs 5-crore Gateway restoration plan ran into another hurdle on
Wednesday. The Standing Committee asked the civic administration to present
the entire revised plan, prepared by the Indian National Trust for Arts and
Cultural Heritage (Intach), for the precinct before giving approval for the
appointment of contractor to kickstart work.
Ravindra Pawar, NCP leader in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC)
and a Standing Committee member, wanted to know if the authorities had
conducted a feasibility study of the area for amenities before passing the
plan for the Grade I heritage precinct. “Is there any information about the
number of tourists, buses, hotels and schools around the precinct? What
about parking?” he asked.
With no firm reply coming from the administration, Pawar branded the plan
‘lopsided’. “It is like developing a new airport by merely purchasing
aircrafts, and not planning runway and passenger amenities,” he said.
The NCP councillor also raised the issue of the proposed underground car
park at Regal Cinema Circle. “Does it have the required clearance from the
Mumbai Urban Heritage Conservation Committee as it faces heritage structures
like the Chhatrapathi Shivaji Vastusangrahalaya and the state police head
quarters,” he asked civic officials.
Pawar told DNA that he had obtained a copy of the revised Intach plan, but
“it has left many questions unanswered”. He also questioned the merit of
having a revised plan. “The earlier plan, presented by architect Charles
Correa, had complete funding by the Indian Merchants Chambers (IMC). So,
what is the point in the administration spending its own money,” he asked.
However, Manu Srivastava, additional municipal commissioner (projects) said
that there was no question of undertaking a feasibility study as the
restoration plan was to be undertaken with the space constraints of the
entire area.
“The revised plan creates more plaza space, which means there will be space
for more people. And not only do we have the MUHCC clearance, we also have
the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) nod from Centre,” he added.
Srivastava said that the revised plan of the precinct would be presented
before the Standing Committee members in the next meeting. He was confident
that it would be passed without much ado, and the work would begin soon.