On January 12, a ceremony was held in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India, to mark the opening of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL), which was constructed under the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link Project (Phase I-III), a Japanese Yen loan. The opening ceremony was held at the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link (MTHL).
Mumbai Gulf Crossing (Photo courtesy of Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA))
Tens of thousands of government and business officials and local residents attended the ceremony, which was attended by Prime Minister Modi and Chief Minister Shinde Maharashtra from the Indian side, and Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary Suzuki and JICA India Office Director Saito from the Japanese side.
Scene of the opening ceremony (from right to left: Ambassador Suzuki, Prime Minister Shinde, and the fourth person, Prime Minister Modi)
Mumbai has a population of approximately 18 million and is known as the financial and commercial center of India. Because of its location at the tip of a peninsula with little room for urban development, a special economic zone and a new airport are being constructed in the Navi Mumbai area (meaning “New Mumbai” in the local language) located on the opposite shore. However, the cities of Mumbai and Navi Mumbai need to go around the bay to get to and from each other, which has been a challenge for the two cities to grow as a single economic zone due to the lack of connectivity.
The MTHL is India’s longest transoceanic highway, connecting the two cities via a 22-km, 6-lane sea road. 50 years after its conception in the 1970s, the dream of Mumbai citizens has come true with the cooperation of Japan. The project is expected to reduce travel time between the two cities from over one hour to less than 20 minutes. In addition to improving transportation convenience for users, the project is expected to alleviate chronic traffic congestion in Mumbai, improve connectivity between the two sides of the river, and stimulate economic and social activities as a result.
In addition, the “steel slab box girder” technology, which has been widely used in Japan, was adopted for the first time in India for the construction of this marine road. This method extended the distance between the pillars used to lift the bridge girders and reduced the number of pillars compared to the conventional method. In addition, the construction period was shortened and the burden on the surrounding environment was reduced by erecting the bridge girders in a single operation.
At the ceremony, Prime Minister Modi expressed his hope for the further economic development of the Mumbai metropolitan area and the state of Maharashtra, saying that the dream of MTHL has become a reality. MTHL is expected to contribute to the development of the Mumbai metropolitan area as a new symbol of Japan-India cooperation in Mumbai, the fast-growing center of the Indian economy.
In addition to MTHL, JICA is also developing infrastructure such as the Mumbai Metro, and will continue to support further development in the region.
© Source JICA
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