Reported by Manasi Phadke in Expressindia.com on Jul 09, 2012
Rs 34 cr paid to consultants for projects yet to take off - Express India

The state government’s lethargy in moving ahead with its showcase infrastructure projects for Mumbai has meant that the reports prepared by consultants and paid for in crores of rupees by state development agencies have only gathered dust over the past couple of years. Experts say inadequate planning and lack of political will have stalled the projects even as the city continues to grapple with worsening infrastructure.

Development agencies such as Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) and Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) have spent Rs 33.78 crore — enough to build a 500-m flyover in the city — on seven such key projects, shows data obtained through a Right to Information request.

These projects include three sea links, a Formula 1 circuit, the Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd Metro, an innovation park, the Peddar Road flyover and a 500-acre mangrove park.

“There are likely to be a few false starts, but Rs 34 crore is a substantial amount. Many of these are not even citizen-centric initiatives, but simply showpiece projects. You can’t dream of a fantastic race track in a city that is crumbling. Pouring so much money on planning such projects, which are not executed for years, is not justified,” said Krishnaraj Rao, an RTI activist.

The plan for an F1 track, on which the MSRDC spent Rs 8.96 crore as cost of consultancy, is facing trouble taking off due to the lack of suitable land.

Projects are also stalled due to delays in clearances as in the case of the Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd Metro or the Bandra-Versova sea link, opposition from citizens such as for the Peddar Road flyover, or simply lack of political will in taking swift decisions to bring these projects back on track.

“The state agencies should have a clear vision before hiring consultants about what they want. Despite spending so much, their planning is inadequate,” said architect Nitin Killawala.

For instance, the MMRDA has spent Rs 9.5 crore, most of it on feasibility reports, on the Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd Metro. However, three years after the bhoomi pujan, construction is yet to start as the MMRDA does not have land with a valid environmental clearance for the car depot — the nerve centre of the Metro system.

However, MMRDA spokesperson Dilip Kawathkar said spending on consultants is useful as the state development agencies execute a number of projects and don’t have the manpower required to conduct these studies.

“From whatever projects we have awarded to consultants, we can say that we are implementing 90-95 per cent of them.”