India’s biggest TBM begins tunnelling for Mumbai coastal road

14 Jan 2021 CW Team

Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray formally inaugurated the tunnelling work this week for India’s biggest tunnel boring machine (TBM) by Larsen & Toubro (L&T) for the twin 1,920 m tunnels between Priyadarshini Park and Chowpatty. This will be a short segment in Mumbai’s 29.2 km Coastal Road (Western Freeway) project.

TBM Mavala, a slurry machine, having a diameter of 12.19 m, which was commissioned last week for carrying out the tunnelling work, has since built at least three tunnel rings.

India’s biggest TBM has been named ‘Mavala’ after the infantry warriors in the army of Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji. The TBM will be deployed to dig 3.4 km long tunnels as part of the coastal road project – a 22.2 km long freeway that would run along Mumbai’s western coastline, connecting Marine Lines in the south to Kandivali in the north.

The machine has been manufactured by China Railway Construction Heavy Industry Co. Ltd. (CRCHI) and arrived in Mumbai’s Priyadarshini Park neighbourhood in April 2020.

Assembly works on the TBM commenced in September and its shields, including an Indian-flag themed cutter head, were lowered into the ramp one by one in December 2020.

Each tunnel of this section (MCRP’s 3.93 km Package-4) will be 12 metres wide and comprise two lanes and one emergency lane. The TBM will operate 25 meters below the surface at Girgaum and 75 meters below Malabar Hill.

The BMC has completed over 20% work on the 10.5 km coastal road project, estimated to cost Rs 12,721 crore. So far, Rs 1,300 crore has been spent on the construction work.

L&T plans to excavate 9 m per day for the next 18 months to complete both tunnels by their internal deadline of June 2022.

Image Source

Infrastructure Urban

06 Jul 2026

ABS Marine Sees CRISIL Credit Rating Upgrade

ABS Marine Services has secured an upgrade to its long term and short term credit ratings from CRISIL, reflecting improved profitability and revenue growth through long term contracts. CRISIL moved the long term rating from BBB+/Stable to A-/Stable and revised the short term rating from A2 to A2+. The action signals strengthened financial metrics and operational resilience. The company benefited from durable client relationships with firms such as ONGC and Schlumberger. The rating decision followed stronger cash flows and an enlarged bank loan facility, which increased from Rs 3,705 million (m..

Project BRAHMANK Marks 16 Years Of Strategic Roads In Arunachal

Project BRAHMANK is marking 16 years of work to establish strategic road and bridge links across Arunachal Pradesh, maintaining and developing 811 kilometres of roads and nearly 86 bridges that range from small culverts to large steel and arch bridges. These transport links are described as critical for ensuring year-round movement of defence personnel, equipment and essential supplies while improving everyday travel for people in remote villages. The project balances national security requirements with regional development by focusing on reliable access in challenging terrain. Notable enginee..

Longleng CSOs Give One Week Ultimatum Over Two-Lane Highway

Civil society organisations (CSOs) in Longleng district have demanded immediate restoration of the deteriorating Changtongya–Longleng two-lane road and sought a detailed status report on the stalled construction within one week. The demand followed a consultative meeting convened under the Phom Peoples' Council (PPC) to discuss welfare and development concerns. PPC president YB Angam Phom said prolonged non-maintenance had caused hardship to commuters and affected transportation, local commerce and the district's development. The meeting urged authorities to undertake immediate restoration a..