The fate of Mumbai’s first-ever skywalk at Bandra East continues to be uncertain as the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to put the proposed project of either rebuilding or repairing it on hold owing to financial constraints.
Following a structural audit report, the BMC had declared the skywalk as ‘unsafe’ in 2019. Built by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) in 2008, it has two arms – one connecting Bandra station with the Bandra Court, and the other with Kalanagar.
The civic body had said that instead of repairing the skywalk, it would reconstruct the arm connecting the station to Kalanagar. Tenders were to be floated following the municipal budget of 2020-21. However, the project took a hit owing to shortage of funds.
A senior official from the BMC’s bridges department said the project has been delayed as the focus shifted to emergency projects during the pandemic. “A decision would be taken soon, and we will invite tenders after approval from the civic standing committee,” the official said.
As per an estimate, repair works of the skywalk would have cost between Rs 5 crore and Rs 10 crore, while rebuilding one arm of the bridge would cost Rs 12-16 crore. The official said rebuilding the bridge would be beneficial as certain portions have rusted, which have made the structure weak. He said the arm connecting the station with Bandra court would be first rebuilt, as it has high footfall.
