HC questions Maha govt decision to set up elevated Metro lines

The Bombay High court on Tuesday questioned the Maharashtra government's decision to construct elevated Metro lines across the Mumbai city.

The court said it did not understand why the state and the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) didn't see that the slabs used to construct the elevated Metro lines would "give way after 40-50 years due to vibrations," and carrying out repairs would take years.

"World over, we have not seen elevated Metro lines running across a city. They are usually underground or run on the ground. Can you imagine how long it would take to repair the elevated line slabs and what will happen to the traffic situation in such time?" a bench of Chief Justice Pradeep Nandrajog and Justice Bharati Dangre said.

"Unlike flyovers which you can shut for repairs for some time and provide for an alternative route in the meanwhile, what will you do about an entire metro line?" the court asked.

It directed the state Advocate General Ashutosh Kumbhakoni to ask the authorities concerned to give some thought to the subject.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the MMRDA, seeking permission to clear some mangroves along the proposed Metro lines between Dahisar and Mankhurd areas, and another line near Belapur.

The advocate general informed the court that as per the current plan, only one of all the proposed metro lines in the city would be underground.