Iconic Juhu aeroplane 'takes off' this week

Here's some good news that is bound to bring smiles to the faces of Juhu area locals, especially the tiny tots. Starting this week, the municipal authorities will be commencing reconstruction work of the iconic aeroplane replica at the Juhu garden. It's been three years since the plane was demolished after Pravin Jamdale (8), lost his life while playing under its left wing in 2009. He was a resident of Juhu Koliwada.

A civic official, requesting anonymity, said that since the project was worth Rs 25 lakh, the corporation wasn't getting the desired response from the contractors to rebuild the RCC structure. "There was only one company that submitted a bid to rebuild the plane. Hence we had to re-invite bids last year," informed the official.

Opening shortly: The spot inside Juhu garden where the new plane will be constructed

Three years after the plane at the 7,200 sq ft Juhu Garden was demolished, hundreds of children, who visit the park, are still waiting for the authorities to reconstruct the landmark structure that had fascinated visitors for over five decades.

The official added that in order to carry out soil testing at the garden, the work had to be stalled soon after the contractor's appointment. "The structure is massive and the soil in the garden has to support it. Therefore the soil was tested," he said.

A file pic of the old plane. Pics/Vijay Bate

Fond memories
"Every weekend, I visited the garden with my cousins where we would play in the plane and the train. After Juhu beach, the garden was the only place where we enjoyed the most," said Manali Davne, a resident of Juhu Koliwada.

Officialsspeak
"The work would begin soon and the locals would be able to enjoy their most cherished aeroplane at the garden," said Rahul Shewale, standing committee chairperson.

"The work was stalled for the past two months because of the soil tests and the elections. It will begin this week and will be completed in the next six months," said J Gupta, deputy engineer, Building Construction (Western Suburbs), BMC.u00a0