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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has issued a clarification following concerns raised about the cost escalation of the Madh-Versova bridge due to delays. The civic body asserted that the project's cost has been thoroughly planned and remains within the approved budget.Earlier, Ravi Raja, former Leader of the Opposition in the BMC, questioned the significant rise in project costs, citing an increase of almost 95%. In a post on X (formerly Twitter), he alleged: “Another mega hike in an infra project by @mybmc. This time it’s the bridge connecting Versova Creek and Madh. In January 2024, the project cost was ₹2,038 crore, and now it has increased to ₹3,990 crore. How can this nearly ₹1,900 crore increase be justified? It’s sheer loot of public money. @CMOMaharashtra kindly look into this... The BMC seems to think they aren’t accountable to anyone anymore."The BMC refuted these allegations, stating that there has been no change in the project's original estimated cost. The corporation clarified: “The tender for the project was issued under the ‘Design & Build’ principle, using FIDIC Yellow Book documents. This covers civil, mechanical, and electrical engineering works, including elevated roads, cable-stayed bridges, CCTV, lighting, control rooms, environmental management, operations and maintenance for three years, worker welfare, insurance, and other expenses. The estimated project cost, excluding GST, was ₹2,038 crore at the time of the tender release, and this estimate remains unchanged.”The statement further explained that the lowest bid, from the EPCO-RBL (JV) joint venture, amounted to ₹2,029 crore, which is 0.44% lower than the BMC’s estimated budget. The total project duration is 42 months, including six months for obtaining environmental clearances and NOCs, with the actual construction period set at 36 months. The contractor received the Letter of Acceptance (LOA) on August 29, 2024, with the accepted contract cost of ₹2,029 crore (excluding GST).The BMC also clarified that the total project cost, including taxes, contingency provisions, provisional sums, escalation, land and yard rentals, consultancy fees, water and sewer charges, and other miscellaneous fees, amounts to ₹3,990 crore. All these expenses were accounted for from the outset, and there is no cost escalation.A BMC’s Road and Traffic Department official added, "Currently, residents of Madh Island in Malad (West), Mumbai, have to travel around 18.6 kilometers to reach Andheri, which takes approximately 1 hour and 30 minutes. Due to this, there has been a long-standing demand from residents and local representatives for a bridge connecting Madh Jetty and Versova over the Versova Creek. The proposed bridge will reduce the travel distance to 5 kilometers, cutting travel time from 90 minutes to just 20 minutes. This will result in significant savings in fuel and time while also reducing environmental damage."The BMC concluded by reiterating that the project cost has been carefully planned and remains within the approved budget, addressing any misconceptions.

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