The Maharashtra government is reviving the long-delayed 127-km Alibaug-Virar multi-modal corridor project that will pass through Raigad, Thane and Palghar.
According to a report in Indian Express, Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is in talks with lenders, including Asian Development Bank (ADB), for project financing.
With the Maharashtra Cabinet giving an in-principle approval to seek loans from Housing and Urban Development Corporation (HUDCO) and other lenders for this project, work is expected to start next year.
Connecting National Highway (NH)-8, NH-3, NH-4, Bhiwandi Bypass, NH-4B, Mumbai-Pune Expressway, and NH-17 from Alibaug to Virar, the project is expected to divert the heavy cargo flow that exits from Jawaharlal Nehru Port Trust and gets stuck in inside roads of Navi Mumbai and Thane.
While the project had got an approval in 2012, delays have increased project costs significantly. The project cost was estimated at Rs 12,554 crore in 2012; the current estimate is around Rs 55,564 crore. This increase in costs can be attributed to the rising land costs with around Rs 21,000 crore to be needed only to acquire 1,347.22 hectare of land.
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