People expecting to take a metro ride in Mumbai by the end of July would have to wait at least till December next year, as construction is unlikely to be completed by the deadline set by the implementing agency, the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA).

The Versova-Andheri-Ghatkopar metro corridor is being constructed by Mumbai Metro One Pvt Ltd, a special purpose vehicle formed by Reliance Infrastructure, MMRDA and Veolia Transport. As per the contract, MMOPL has to construct the corridor in five years. But MMOPL had set itself a deadline to operationalise the corridor by the end of July 2010.

According to Ashwini Bhide, Joint Metropolitan Commissioner, MMRDA, around half of the civil construction on the 11.4 km corridor has been competed. “Over 50 per cent of the work on the corridor is over, including civil construction; girder launching has begun in sections. Simultaneously, other works of signalling, advanced ticketing system, etc are under way,” Bhide said.

Asked whether MMOPL will be able to commission the corridor by July-end, Bhide responded, “It will be commissioned by December-end...there are delays on the ground as permission from railways for construction over Andheri railway lines is pending. But it cannot be called a delay since construction period as per the contract is five years.”

The delay in construction of the special bridge over the railway lines near Andheri station was due to railway authorities allowing construction only for two-three hours—when train services are shut. A senior official added, “Two-three hours of construction time would not be sufficient to finish the work in time. Therefore, talks with railway authorities would be needed to allow construction throughout while safety of people and railway property would be taken care of,” said an official requesting anonymity.

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