In what can only be termed as good news, Mahaarashtra Chief Minister, Devendra Fadnavis has given a nod for the Brihanmumbai Electricity Supply and Transport Undertaking (BEST) to redevelop three bus depots – Bandra, Deonar and Dindoshi – as part of a plan for the undertaking to generate additional revenue.
BEST has in the past redeveloped its existing land assets as part of plans to monetise them. Starting over 20 years ago, the Seven Bungalows (Saat Bangla) bus station was redeveloped as the ill-fated G7 shopping complex. A similar project began at the Marol Maroshi bus station. The once-dreaded Kurla depot which had been damaged in the 2005 floods was eventually redeveloped by Kanakia as Kanakia Zillion along with the Mahim and Versova-Yari Road (Vesave-Yari Road) bus stations as Kanakia Miami and Kanakia Hollywood respectively.
BEST officials also urged Fadnavis for a fare hike, but the Chief Minister asked them to put forth a formal proposal first.
The Bandra depot –which once also was home to a slaughterhouse in the vicinity – has had large amounts of land encroached upon. The Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM) – BEST’s parent body – is simultaneously building an access road behind the depot to connect it to the Western Express Highway.
BEST’s redevelopment plans, however, have not been without controversy. At the site of the Mahim bus station, 1,000sqft of land was leased out to Fortpoint Automotive in 1993 and subsequently extended till 2018. In 2007, Parsvnath Developers was given the tender to remodel and redevelop the 2 acre plot at a cost of ₹22 crore. In 2010, Kanakia took over the project. In 2015, BEST terminated its lease with Fortpoint, which then went to court before getting a favourable ruling in 2017. Later that year, the MCGM asked for BEST to surrender the land that had earlier been leased out to Fortpoint as setback land – a prerequisite for granting of completion and occupation certificates for the tower coming up atop the bus station. At the site of the Marol Maroshi bus station, BEST had given the tender to KSL and Industries in 2008, who in turn subcontracted it to Dhruvi Properties, allegedly circumventing procedure. The matter came to light when property buyers approached the Maharashtra Real Estate Regulatory Authority (MahaRERA). Interestingly, one name that popped up was that of BEST’s former General Manager, Uttam Khobragade. To read more about his contributions to BEST, do read: The ‘BEST’ scamster Indians should know about – Congress and the Khobragades have a lot to explain.
Fadnavis urged officials to find feasible ways to increase the fleet strength of the undertaking, which has been dwindling over the last few years. It currently operates a mere 2,783 buses including both buses owned by the undertaking and on wet lease, down from 3,228 in 2023 and 4,608 in 2011. He advised officials to look for funds under the Centre’s National Clean Air Policy (NCAP). He also urged the MCGM to allocate at least 3% of its budget to BEST. He also said that BEST would soon sign an MoU with Google to give commuters real time updates for buses.
Also Read:
BEST To ‘Smarten’ Depots Across City With World Bank IFC Assistance
BEST Has A Problem That Needs To Be Solved, Writes A Transit Fan
Featured Image: Proposed redevelopment of Bandra Bus Depot (Image via Haldilal/Twitter)
