Supreme Court To Decide Fate Of Ghodbunder-Bhayandar Twin Tunnel Project On May 29

Mumbai: The proposed Ghodbunder-Bhayandar twin tunnel project—expected to significantly decongest one of the city's busiest arterial stretches—is currently caught in a legal tangle, even as the Supreme Court is set to pass an interim order this Thursday on the contentious tendering process led by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).

The project is in dispute between construction giant Larsen & Toubro (L&T), an allegedly disqualified bidder, and the MMRDA which has selected Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL), the firm has been selected as the lowest bidder. After the Bombay High Court upheld MMRDA’s decision, L&T challenged the ruling in the apex court.

The proposed Ghodbunder Bhayander tunnel and elevated Rd project is expected to significantly decongest one of the city's busiest arterial stretches.Megha Engineering and Infrastructure Ltd (MEIL) firm was selected as the lowest bidder.The ambitious tunnel and elevated tunnel, which span
a 5-km tunnel of 14.6-metre diameter, connecting Gaimukh near the mouth of Vasai Creek in Mira-Bhayandar to the Fountain Hotel junction at Shilphata in Thane. The project cost is estimated at Rs 8,000 crore.The second project, a 9.8-km elevated creek road bridge, will connect Bhayandar with Ghodbunder Road in Thane. The cost of this project is estimated at Rs 6,000 crore.This project will drastically improve connectivity between the eastern and Western suburbs. The travel distance will be saved.

Thane and Borivali are not directly connected at present, forcing motorists to rely on the congested Thane-Ghodbunder Road. The current lack of viable east-west connectors between Jogeshwari and Mira-Bhayander on the Western Express Highway (WEH), and between Vikhroli and Thane on the Eastern Express Highway (EEH), adds to the traffic woes.

With few alternatives, vehicles travelling between Nashik, Kalyan-Dombivli, Navi Mumbai, Thane, and the western suburbs must take long detours through Ghodbunder, contributing to significant delays and environmental degradation.

The urgency of the twin tunnel is underscored by rising traffic volumes and overburdened link roads like the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road (SCLR), Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR), and Andheri-Ghatkopar Link Road (AGLR), which regularly see gridlocks during peak hours.

The Thane-Ghodbunder road originally maintained by the Public Works Department (PWD), was handed over to the Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) in 2000 for widening and maintenance on a Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis. The concession ended in December 2020, after Rs 172 crore was spent on upgrades and securitization of tolls.

For now, the fate of the tunnel—and the potential relief it promises—hangs on the upcoming Supreme Court decision.

The proposed 2 +2 lane tunnel are as follows:

The project is divided into 2 civil works packages and the third package is a well-planned transport system (Intelligent Transport) work package.

The lowest offer received is from MEIL 

The construction period of the project will be Five year.