‘New rly stn between Thane & Mulund will help commuters’

Bombay HC lifted a stay on transfer of part of land belonging to the Thane Mental Hosp, for the construction of a railway station

First India Bureau

Thane: Chief Minister Eknath Shinde on Saturday hailed the Bombay High Court's decision to lift a stay on the transfer of a parcel of land be- longing to the Thane Mental Hospital for the construction of a new railway station. The new facility will reduce the burden of commuter footfall at Thane and Mulund stations, he said.

The high court on Friday allowed the transfer of more than 14 acres of land--from the hospital’s total 72 acres--for the new railway station.

A release issued by the CM’s office said the station will come up on land belonging to the government’s health department.

“Of the total 72 acres of (the hospital’s) land, only 14.83 acres will be utilized for the new rail- way station. Once this station is built, the commuter footfall at Thane station will reduce by 31% and Mulund station by 21%,” he said.

A whopping 7.50 lakh people use Thane railway station for commute daily, CM Shinde said. Shinde represents the Kopri-Pachpakhadi Assembly constituency in Thane.

He said that due to the persistent efforts by Shiv Sena's elected representatives, the railway administration approved the plans of the new railway station. A total of Rs289 crore was allocated for the project under the Thane Municipal Corporation's

Smart City scheme.

Meanwhile, Shiv Sena - Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray leader and Thane MP Rajan Vichare issued a statement saying that the demand for the new railway station had been pending for a long time.

“I took the Railway Board’s approval for it and got the funds approved…. After eight long years, the high court has lifted the stay imposed in 2015. So it’s time for celebration now,” he said.