Give us our bridges back: Residents protest delay in construction of foot overbridges

Residents hand over a letter to the local station master during their protest on Sunday

Holding placards, residents and local activists, including senior citizens, from Girgaum and Charni Road protested at the railway station on Sunday against the delay in reconstruction of foot overbridges. They also demanded restoration of the ticket booking office on the Churchgate-end of the station.

Railway officials said work to upgrade the station and for the reconstruction of the ticket office would begin soon, adding that the bridges fall under the BMC's jurisdiction.

"Everyone in the city knows that Charni Road used to have a wonderful bridge network and connectivity. The process of demolition started three years ago in the name of safety. It is sad that the residents here, especially senior citizens, have been suffering due to the lack of a proper bridge connecting east to west," said resident Surendra Badrike.

Troubling local residents

"The work on the bridges has been going on at a snail's pace. Moreover, in the process, the old ticket office was also demolished one night, leaving residents of Thakurdwar, Bhuleshwar, Fanaswadi and Mughbat in trouble," said Gaurav Sagwekar of Amhi Girgaonkar, who was part of the protest.

Sources said that for people staying on the south end of Charni Road station, the walk to buy a ticket has become long, as they now have to cross over to the other side.

"Does rebuilding a bridge take that much time? This is sheer harassment of local residents, given the fact that it was very well known how important the bridges have been for local connectivity. We will not allow anyone to rest till the bridges and the ticket office are up and functional," said another resident, Deepak Rajpurkar.

The residents handed over a letter to the local station master on Sunday, and have also written to railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and BMC chief Iqbal Chahal, demanding strict action against officials responsible for the delay.

Work is underway

Western Railway officials said the bridges are under the jurisdiction of the local municipal office. "As far as the railways is concerned, we are reconstructing the old station building, and the ticket booking office," a WR official said.

Officials said the project has been sanctioned at a cost of Rs 2.51 crore. "Work is on an advanced stage with the General Arrangement Drawings required for the construction having been finalised. Structural design is under preparation," a top official said.

"The main BMC skywalk along the west side of the footpath and parallel to platform no. 4 of Charni Road station has already been commissioned. One more foot overbridge connection across the road to Sahitya Sangh Mandir will be taken up by BMC," another official said.

While the BMC local ward office did not respond to mid-day's calls, officials from the Bridges Department said some structural defects were found in the deck of the skywalk's foot overbridge in 2019 and it had to be shut for safety. On the south end (Churchgate-end), the staircase had collapsed leading to closure.

Civic officials said the process is underway for upgradation and reconstruction of the bridges, and now that most of the COVID-19 restrictions are lifted, work should pick up speed.

2019
Year one of the bridges was demolished