BMC to handover Mithi River bridge work to MMRDA due to work delay

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has decided to hand over the project to the Mumbai Metropolitan Development Authority due to a delay in the completion of work on a bridge across the Mithi river (MMRDA). BMC would also provide MMRDA Rs 51.81 crore to complete the bridge reconstruction, which has been on hold for the past four years. The work will be handed over to MMRDA, according to the BMC, since the authority has a team of technical experts for such risky projects. According to an official, the BMC standing committee approved the proposal to pay Rs 51.81 crore to MMRDA as the BMC-appointed contractor failed to complete the restoration of the bridge at CST Road in Kurla, that connects BKC and Kalina to the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road (SCLR). As per the proposal, the BMC awarded Valecha Engineering Limited a Rs 59-crore contract in January 2017 to complete the reconstruction and widening of the 750-meter-long bridge over the Mithi River. The foundation work, however, may not begin until November 2018. The project was supposed to be finished by May 2019, but the contractor fell behind schedule. The MMRDA is currently working on the widening of SCLR due to the delays in bridge reconstruction. As a result, BMC has decided to delegate the remaining bridge work to the MMRDA, according to the official. The proposal claims that the previous contractor for the project completed work on the bridge worth Rs 13.64 crore. Image Source Also read: Railways builds bridge on Barak river for Jiribam-Imphal project Also read: Pune civic body estimates Rs 150 cr cost for concrete roads, bridges