Authorities Announce Two Year Delay For Santacruz-Chembur Link Road Extension

The extension to the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road (SCLR) between Kurla and Vakola which is currently under construction has been delayed by two years coupled with a cost increase of ₹109 crores. This comes as the extension from Kapadia Nagar (CST Road) to the Western Express Highway (WEH) at Vakola is not expected to be completed until at least March 2022. The previous deadline for this project was 2020. 

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The Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) said that the cost increase is mostly due to the additional works that being carried out by the contractor including the relocation of service lines, construction of a retaining wall, the widening of the bridge over the Mithi river, and also increasing the length of a stretch which may be affected due to the proposed Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project. The agency approved the cost increase for the project in October.

The project contract was awarded to J Kumar Infraprojects Ltd at a bid of ₹449 crores in 2016. At the time, it was expected to be completed in 36 months. However, due to a variety of hurdles and bottlenecks at Kurla, the new extension was proposed to offer seamless east-west connectivity through the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road. 

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The MMRDA has further said that approximately 55% of the construction works had been completed as of October this year. The transcript of the recently held meeting said, “MMRDA will receive funds to the tune of ₹87 crore from the Mumbai municipal corporation and the National High-Speed Rail Corporation (NHSRCL), to complete the works affected by the proposed bullet train and works along the Mithi river.”

The COVID-19 pandemic has seen a drastic increase in cost for a wide range of civic projects, mostly due to lockdown-related delays. Authorities will now have to contend with the ground realities and make adjustments to their spending accordingly.  

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