R Sridhar, Downtown
Piped gas in Mumbai is only a matter of time. Mahanagar Gas Ltd (MGL), which
supplies piped natural gas (PNG) to about 2,78,500 households in Mumbai (as
also compressed natural gas (CNG) to 1,78,000 vehicles and 800 small
commercial customers in and around Mumbai), is in discussion with the
Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) and government officials
about starting services in this part
of town.
The MGL project, which started in 1995 from Chembur has covered major parts
of Mumbai through its distribution network – from Dadar to Dahisar and from
Sion to Mulund. MGL now has plans to target 6.5 lakh houses in Mumbai. And
they have already started work in Prabhadevi, Worli, Tardeo, Nariman Point
and Colaba. And these areas may see their own MGL pipes soon.
However the issue lies with the topography of South Mumbai not being
conducive to lay pipes. The predominant soil cover in Mumbai city is sandy
whereas in the suburban district, the soil cover is alluvial and loamy.
Also, South Mumbai being a VVIP area, permissions are difficult to come by.
Says PK Gupta, managing director, MGL, “It is a high security zone, so there
are issues with permissions not only with the security and government
agencies but also private cooperative societies. Many buildings here are
old, so that too poses a security hazard. Plus there is a space constraint
in some of the areas. Still it’s not something that cannot be resolved.”
South Mumbai Member of Parliament Milind Deora says he had arranged meetings
with the civic officials for MGL. “They did have some difficulties, but it’s
something that the company and the civic body need to sort out. As far as I
am concerned, we would welcome the availability of piped gas in this part of
town. I guess MGL’s decision will be based on the economics of having such a
service here, but I would think there would be many takers for piped gas in
South Mumbai.”
Of course SoBo residents are eager. As Haji Ali resident, Smita Desai puts
it, “Of course we will welcome it. My relatives in the suburbs keep talking
about the ease of using it.”
It’s a question of wait and watch.
2,78,500
No of domestic households served by PNG
1995
Year when the MGL project started in Mumbai
6.5 lakh
Number of households MGL plans to tap
sridhar.ramakrishnan@timesgroup.com
URL : http://www.downtownplus.com/fullStory.asp?articleID=DP7ART22200713620