Dinesh Kamath's news item 'When will Airoli-Kalwa rail link project become a reality?' that was published in Newsband

When will Airoli-Kalwa rail link project become a reality?

By Dinesh Kamath

NAVI MUMBAI: The Airoli-Kalwa rail link project aims to provide direct connectivity between Kalyan and Navi Mumbai. But the government agencies are not cooperating and hence the project is still pending.

The local government is trying its best to get green signal for the project but they don’t seem to get cooperation from government organizations like the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority and City Industrial and Development Corporation. If these organizations could make provisions in the form of finance, the project can get a boost. Even the state government can come up with funds which can do a lot of good to the project. 

At present a commuter who wants to travel between Kalyan and Navi Mumbai has to break journey at Thane and board the trans-harbour train. If this link would become a reality, it would become easy for him to travel between the two stations.

In this project, there are no major engineering challenges or land acquisition issues like in the case of Navi Mumbai International Airport project.

Airoli-Kalwa link project will cost Rs 350 crore and it involves building of viaduct between Airoli and Kalwa, bypassing Thane station. This viaduct will connect Thane and Diva and the stations in between too.

Only proper financing by the state government can make this project a reality.