Phase two of Marine Drive beautification to begin only by year end.

Ground work for the next phase of the Marine Drive beautification project will begin only by the end of this year, officials have said.

According to sources in the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA), due to the election code of conduct and the pending clearances from other agencies including the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF), the tenders will be floated only by July this year.

Three months will be spent finalising the bids and awarding the work order, but ground work may not begin following this due to the election code of conduct for the assembly elections. It is only once the new state government is formed that the second phase of the beautification project will commence.

Among other things, the beautification plan includes a viewing balcony, amphitheatre, and the restoration of Parsi Gate, which is diagonally opposite Taraporewala Aquarium.

DNA