Ashwini Bhide Highlights Last-Mile Connectivity as Key Focus for Mumbai Metro

05 Nov 2025 CW Team

The IMC Chamber of Commerce and Industry (IMC) hosted a session on ‘Mumbai Metro: Transforming Connectivity and Commuting,’ featuring Ms. Ashwini Bhide, Managing Director, Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL). Addressing IMC’s managing committee, Ms. Bhide emphasised the critical role of last-mile connectivity in Mumbai’s expanding transport infrastructure.

“Mumbai is the economic powerhouse of Maharashtra, and over 95 per cent of the population in this region is urbanised. With nearly one trillion dollars expected to come from the Mumbai MMR alone, continued investment in large-scale infrastructure like the Mumbai Metro Rail is essential,” she said.

During the session, IMC announced its association with Project Mumbai’s flagship initiative, Mumbai Climate Week (MCW), to be held from 17–19 February 2026. Hosted by Maharashtra’s Chief Minister, Shri Devendra Fadnavis, the event will position India as a climate action leader of the Global South.

Shishir Joshi, Founder & CEO of Project Mumbai, said: “Mumbai Climate Week marks a historic step for Maharashtra and India as we unite and amplify the voices of the Global South.”

IMC President Sunita Ramnathkar added: “The Mumbai Metro is not just transforming how we commute—it is shaping the city’s economic and environmental future. Our association with Mumbai Climate Week underscores our commitment to advancing climate action and sustainable growth.”

Real Estate

05 Dec 2025

RBI Rate Cut Boosts Confidence Across Housing Market

Industry Context and Market DynamicsThe real estate industry has welcomed the RBI’s rate cut as a timely boost to affordability and demand. With home prices having risen steadily across major markets, even a marginal reduction in interest rates meaningfully strengthens purchasing power, especially for first-time and mid-income buyers.Ashish Jerath, President – Sales & Marketing, Smartworld Developers, observes:“The RBI’s 25-basis-point cut, bringing the repo rate down to 5.25%, is a timely boost for the real estate sector. Lower interest rates reduce borrowing costs, enabling homeb..

BMC Resumes Rs 170 Billion Road Works, Targets 80 per cent By Jan 2026

Following the withdrawal of the southwest monsoon in October, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has restarted work on 645 roads—covering 297.49 kilometres—under its large-scale concretisation programme. Data shows that more than 60 per cent of the resumed works are located in the western suburbs. Officials said the civic body aims to complete concretisation on 80 per cent of the roads where fresh work has begun by January 2026. Launched in 2022, the Rs 170 billion project seeks to concretise 700 kilometres of roads across Mumbai. All civil works were halted during the monsoon ..

India Pushes Digital Shift In Urban Land Mapping

The Department of Land Resources (DoLR) under the Ministry of Rural Development has convened a National Symposium on NAKSHA – the National Geospatial Knowledge-based Land Survey of Urban Habitations – to advance India’s transition to modern, technology-driven land mapping. Speaking at the inaugural session, Secretary Manoj Joshi underscored the urgent need to move revenue departments away from outdated, tape-based methods and rough hand-drawn sketches. He stressed that adopting latitude–longitude-based digital mapping and GIS-linked registration systems is essential for economic stabi..