Mumbai 2025: A city reborn

Ranjeet Jadhav Dipti Singh Sameer Surve and Rajendra B AklekarThe city of Mumbai is set to undergo a remarkable transformation in 2025 with a host of urban infrastructure developments across transportation education civic amenities and health services From cuttingedge road projects like the elevated Vakola connector and the completion of the Samruddhi Highwayrsquos final stretch to significant milestones in Metro rail connectivity with the Aqua Line Phase 2 and Red Line extensions the cityrsquos transport network will witness unparalleled upgradesAqua Line Phase 2Phase 2 of Mumbairsquos first underground Metro line running from BKC to Acharya Atre Chowk in Worli is expected to open in May 2025 The first phase of the Aqua Line spanning 1269 km from BandraKurla Complex BKC to Aarey was inaugurated by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on October 5 2024 with commercial operations beginning on October 7 2024Key Phase 1 Highlightsgtgt First day of operations 20482 passengers between 630 am and 9 pmgtgt Highest singleday ridership 27108 passengers on the first Sunday after openinggtgt Firstmonth ridership Over 600000 passengers with an average daily ridership of around 20000MultiModal Integration MMIgtgt Churchgate Metro Station Direct connection to Churchgate Railway Station via groundlevel access for easy transfersgtgt CSMT Metro Station A subway connects the Metro station to the existing CSMT subway facilitating transfers to both suburban and intercity trainsgtgt Jagannath Shankar Sheth Metro Station Metro entryexit points are integrated with the Mumbai Central Railway Station and the State Transport ST bus standgtgt Mahalaxmi Metro Station Groundlevel access connects the Metro station with Mahalaxmi Railway Station A footover bridge links the Metro station to the monorail stationPhase 2 Stations1 Dharavi2 Shitaladevi Mandir3 Dadar Metro4 Siddhivinayak5 Worli6 Acharya Atre Chowk7 Science Centre8 Mahalaxmi Metro9 Jagannath Shankar Sheth Metro10 Grant Road Metro11 Girgaon12 Kalbadevi13 CSMT Metro14 Hutatma Chowk15 Churchgate Metro16 Vidhan Bhavan17 Cuffe ParadeSantacruz Chembur Link Road SCLRElevated Vakola connectorMotorists travelling via the SantacruzChembur Link Road SCLR towards Andheri on the Western Express Highway will no longer have to stop at the Vakola signal as the elevated connectormdashIndiarsquos first sharpcurvature span with an orthotropic steel deck supported by stayed cablesmdashis nearing completion Currently vehicles heading from the SCLR to the Vakola junction face traffic congestion due to the signal and ongoing construction of the connectorHindu Hurudaysamrat Balasaheb Thackeray Samruddhi MahamargSamruddhi Highwayrsquos last stretchThe 76kmlong final stretch of the highway connecting Igatpuri to Amane initiallly planned to open by end of 2024 is expected to open in 2025 The opening was delayed due to prolonged construction of the road connecting MumbaiNashik Highway with the Samruddhi Highway near Amane interchange Commuters travelling between Mumbai and Nagpur must use old MumbaiNashik Highway up to Igatpuri before joining the Samruddhi HighwayMetro Line 2A File picSatej ShindeMumbai MetroRed Line 92BWork on Red Line 9 between Dahisar and Kashimira is nearing completion If the timeline is maintained the line could be ready for commissioning enabling trains to reach Kashimira directly A small stretch of Line 2B from Mandale to Diamond Garden in Chembur is also nearing completion and is tentatively expected to open in 2025 pending train trials and approvals from the Commissioner of Railway SafetyAmrit Bharat Stations and Foot Over BridgesBasic upgrade works at smaller halt stations such as Kanjurmarg will be completed in 2025 Additional projects include ongoing work on foot over bridges at various stations on both the Central Railway CR and Western Railway WRHealthThe BMC will implement a Hospital Management System in all its hospitals This system will assign a unique number to each patient which will serve as their health identity The system will provide civic doctors with access to patientsrsquo medical history Additionally hospitals will transition to paperless operations under this initiativeWalkway at Malabar Hill PicShadab KhanNature walkThe cityrsquos first elevated nature trail walkway at Malabar Hill will open to the public in January 2025 The walkway is 470 metres long and 24 metres wide featuring an elevated wooden deck railings and vertical supportsGokhale Bridge File picAshish RajeBridgesThe Gokhale bridge in Andheri will be completed and the Vikhroli EastWest connector will open for vehicular trafficCoastal Road at Haji Ali File picAshish RajeCoastal RoadAll phases of the WorlitoNariman Point Coastal Road will be completed by January 2025 Currently only one portion of the girder remains to be connected to the BandraWorli Sea LinkChanges in Marathi assessment systemStarting from the academic year 202526 the Marathi language will no longer be assessed as a graded subject in nonstateboard schools including those affiliated with CBSE ICSE and others Instead evaluation for this compulsory subject will transition to a marksbased system The Maharashtra school education department recently issued a directive clarifying that the earlier grading system for Marathi was a temporary postpandemic measure introduced to address challenges caused by school closures during lockdowns Going forward all schools will evaluate students in Marathi using marks rather than grades as mandated by the directiveThis move aligns with the provisions of the Maharashtra Compulsory Teaching and Learning of Marathi Language in Schools Act enacted in 2020 which made Marathi a compulsory subject in all schools across the state regardless of board affiliation While the state education department had announced in April 2023 that Marathi would be assessed through grades in nonstateboard schools this system will now be replaced with marksbased evaluation starting from the 202526 academic yearMore jobsoriented courses in the offingIn June 2023 the Maharashtra government announced plans to convert popular bifocal courses in Mumbai into employmentoriented specialised courses aligned with the National Skill Qualification Framework NSQF starting from the academic year 202425 However a recent government resolution has postponed the rollout to the academic year 202526The decision to defer implementation aims to facilitate a smoother transition and ensure that junior colleges are adequately prepared for the introduction of these NSQFaligned vocational courses The state had introduced bifocal vocational courses to equip youth with professional training promote employment and selfemployment and curb the increasing preference for collegiate education These courses currently account for 30 per cent of vocational subjects and span technical commerce agriculture and fisheries disciplines However in June 2023 the government resolved to align all bifocal courses with the NSQFUnder the revised timeline institutions planning to start or continue vocational courses must implement the NSQFupgraded curriculum starting from the academic year 202526 ldquoThis extension allows institutions to adapt to the new framework and ensures a streamlined launch of the revamped vocational programsrdquo said a senior official from the state education department20000Average daily ridership on Aqua Line1269 kmLength of Aqua Line from Aarey to BKCOctober 7Day operations of Aqua Line began