BMC chief Iqbal Singh Chahal said on Friday that Prime Minister Narendra Modi will inaugurate the first phase of the Mumbai coastal road expressway and lay the foundation stone for the Goregaon-Mulund link road on February 19.

Under the first phase, a 10-kilometre, four-lane south-bound stretch from Worli to Marine Drive will be opened for the public a day after the inauguration, newswire PTI reported.

In Pics: Mumbai Coastal Road`s first phase, Worli to Nariman Point, gears up for opening

The entire coastal road project, costing Rs 13,983 crore, is 84 per cent complete, with the second phase, an 8-lane stretch with twin tunnels, expected to open by May 15.

Chahal noted that the Marine Drive to Worli stretch would reduce travel time from 40-45 minutes to 10 minutes.

In the BMC budget for 2024-25, Rs 2,800 crore is allocated for the Marine Drive to Worli stretch, Rs 1,130 crore for the Versova-Dahisar stretch, and Rs 220 crore for the Dahisar to Bhayander route.

The BMC chief also said that work orders for all six packages of the Versova-Dahisar stretch have been issued, and the entire 8-lane route from Marine Drive to Mira-Bhayander will be ready for motorists by 2028-29.

In Pics: A sneak peek into Mumbai Coastal Road Expressway`s grandeur

The PM will also lay the foundation stone for the Rs 6,200 crore Goregaon-Mulund link road, connecting the northwest to the northeast part of the city. The work order for the project has been given, and construction is set to begin this year.

In the BMC budget for 2024-25, Rs 1,610 crore is earmarked for bridges, and Rs 3,200 crore for the road and traffic department. The Gokhale Bridge, replacing the original one over Western Railway tracks at Andheri, is expected to open for traffic before April 25 this year, according to the civic chief.

Meanwhile, no new taxes were proposed in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation`s Rs 59,954.75-crore budget for 2024-25, the highest ever, as it made special provisions for the coastal road project and proposed four new schemes, one of them for providing medicines free to patients at civic hospitals for which Rs 1,200 crore was set aside.

In Pics: Aerial view of under-construction Mumbai Coastal Road Expressway

The expenditure on the health budget was hiked to Rs 7,191 crore from Rs 6,309 crore in 2023-24 and a provision of Rs 340 crore was made for upgradation of footpaths, lanes and bylanes. A sum of Rs 100 crore was allocated for implementation of a scheme for women`s security.

The budgetary estimates were 10.5 per cent more than the 2023-24 amount of Rs 54,256.07 crore. (With inputs from agencies)

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