Girangaon textile museum work to begin………Ketaki Ghoge
The citys first textile heritage museum project depicting the bygone era of bustling Girangaon in the 80s will soon takeoff.
The state governments textile department onWednesday reviewed the project proposal by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and asked the authorities to initiate the work.
The museum is expected to be complete in two years.
But, the state may levy a surcharge on all mill land development projects all new malls, residential and commercial complexes to fund the museum.
The states empowered committee on infrastructure headed by the chief minister in its meeting recently had asked the urban development department and the municipal corporation to deliberate on this and make recommendations.
The final decision is expected by July end.
As per the plans chalked out by municipal corporation consultants, the textile museum will be spread across four acres, while a landscaped park will occupy another four acres at the India United Mills 2 and 3 at Lalbaug, the largest government owned mill.
The entire project will cost around Rs 128 crore. The land has been handed over to the BMC,so now the project can take off.We have asked for some funding from the Centre also, said textiles minister Naseem Khan.
The municipal corporation has kept aside Rs 5crore for the project, and Rs 15 croreis expected from the Centre.
Apart from this, there is no provision for financing and maintenance of the museum.
Mill lands in central Mumbai spread across 600 acres have been freed for development and mega residential, commercial and retail projects have now mushroomed in old Girangaon.
A surcharge on mill land development for maintaining a textile museum is not wrong.
The redevelopment projects can pay a small surcharge to run the museum that will be a testimony to the past,said a bureaucrat, requesting anonymity.