MMRDA gets Nhava-Sewri link

The Maharashtra government has awarded the construction of the 22km Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL), which will connect Mumbai with the rest of Maharashtra, to MMRDA. The project will connect Sewri in Mumbai city to Nhava Shewa in Raigad district by a bridge over the sea. The project has been delayed due to many reasons. The first tender for the project in 2008 saw only two parties responding with bids leading to a huge financial gap. In 2009, with the global recession hitting India, there were no responses to the tender. The MMRDA is now in the process of appointing a consultant to prepare a detailed project report. The development model proposed is PPP. According to Rahul Asthana, MMRDA’s Metropolitan Commissioner, the agency would float tenders by November 2011, and award the contract by March 2012. The project is likely to take six years for completion, with a partial opening after four years.