By 2052, Mumbai will get global tag

Concept plan for city by Singapore-based urban planning consultant suggests three options for Mumbai's transformation

Mumbai will be a world-class city by 2032 and a global city by 2052, states a concept plan for the city, prepared by a state government appointed Singapore-based consulting firm. Surbana International, leading consultants in urban planning, have drawn up three options in the concept plan, which include reclamation of land at several places, protection of the available land, creating a land bank, and building a comprehensive transport network.
The company, which was instrumental in the planning of Singapore, made a presentation of the concept plan to chief minister Ashok Chavan on Tuesday. The plan is expected to be finalised by 2011 after it is cleared by the steering committee, which comprised key officials from the Mumbai Transformation Support Unit (MTSU), the urban development department, Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), and the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
City of Cities, which is first of the three options in the plan, involves creation of several thematic central business districts (CBDs) in the five growth centres around the Mumbai. It also involves rejuvenating existing CBDs and de-congesting them. The second option — City of Connection — is about connecting Navi Mumbai and Mumbai to create a land bank. It also has provision of strengthening the existing CBDs and creating a huge network of public transport in the form of metro and monorail.
City of Islands, the third option, in the concept plan is about creating endless opportunities by connecting islands in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR). The concept plan also suggested reclamation of land at certain places in the MMR, including re-proliferation of the Thane creek. However, Chavan expressed concerns over the suggestion and asked officials to study it thoroughly before going ahead. He also directed officials at the meeting to not restrict the development to only the MMR and expand the limits to Pune, Nashik and Aurangabad.
"Growth in the southern part of Mumbai has stagnated. The expansion focus has to be on northern suburbs dealing with the periphery. Also, the model of expansion has to be sustainable," Chavan told the officials. He also directed them to focus on affordable housing for the lower-income and middle-income group. The concept plan also suggested an airport at Revas in Alibaug to expand the transport network for coping up with expected rise in air traffic.
According to an official from the urban development department, while finalising the concept plan, the steering committee will have to take various vital factors into consideration. "The project submitted is tough to implement though it's not impossible. We will have to think of CRZ norms, waterways, and several other factors that would be largely affected during the development. For the third option, the ocean current and hydrology need to be thought of," said the official. He added that the final outcome could also be a combination of all the three options.
Once finalised, the BMC and MMRDA will be the nodal agencies for implementing the concept plan in the city and MMR respectively.