No new infra project in 6 yrs: CM

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Chief minister Prithviraj Chavan admitted that in the past six years, the island city has seen no new infrastructure. The negative attitude of investors and economic slowdown are the reasons for such a dismal scenario, said Mr Chavan.
“It is true that there has been no new infrastructure project in Mumbai in the last six years. We need to seriously consider the reasons as to why not even a single new project came up in all these years. It also means that the country is not ready for big infrastructure projects like the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL),” the chief minister said.
The `9,630-crore MTHL project has failed to attract any bidder despite all the possible efforts that the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) had made to sweeten the deal. The proposed project would help connect Sewri and Nhava Sheva across the Mumbai harbour.
According to the chief minister, the economic slowdown has definitely had a negative impact on the investors’ confidence and hence, they are not keen on taking up new infrastructure projects. The crashing of the value of rupee was also a major cause of concern for all.
When asked why the state government was still deliberating on proposals of infrastructure projects, Mr Chavan clarified that he has no pending files related to any infrastructure project. “Decisions can be taken when there is a proposal. How can I take a decision when I don’t have any proposals with me?,” Mr Chavan said.
When informed about the claims of Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) officials said that the proposals pertaining to such projects were still pending with him, he said, “I have no proposals pending with me. I cleared them as they came.”
The chief minister also suggested that the public works department (PWD) and MSRDC could make a temporary toll naka to take hour-to-hour reading of the traffic movement before approving any new proposals of the toll naka. He is of the opinion that this arrangement would enable the department to analyse the accurate data of the traffic movement of the said road, which would help in preventing situations that demand collection of toll beyond the stipulated time.
He is also of the opinion that switching to hybrid and electric cars is necessary in future. “In view of the constant increase in crude oil prices, we have to move towards hybrid and electric cars in the next five to seven years,” Mr Chavan said.