Mumbai, May 23 (IANS) The Western Railway (WR) administration on Saturday successfully completed a major anti-encroachment drive near the Bandra railway station, completely flattening all illegal structures and shanties in the Garib Nagar area of Mumbai’s Bandra East.

Following the five-day intensive operation, debris clearance work commenced on Saturday.

According to the Railway officials, while unauthorised structures were completely razed, the ground floors of around 100 authorised houses in the locality were left untouched to ensure safety, though upper illegal floors of these buildings were demolished.

The five-day mega demolition drive was not entirely peaceful.

Violence erupted when the demolition of a local religious structure began, prompting angry residents to pelt stones at the authorities to halt the process.

To bring the situation under control and disperse the rioting mob, the police resorted to a cane-charge. Several police personnel and locals sustained injuries during the clash. However, due to a heavy security blanket and strict police deployment, further escalation was prevented.

Aside from this single incident of stone-pelting, the rest of the demolition process was carried out smoothly.

“Western Railway has achieved 100 per cent completion in this demolition drive against unauthorised structures. Work to remove the resulting debris has already begun. Furthermore, to ensure that this land is not encroached upon again, the construction of a protective boundary wall has been initiated and will be completed soon,” Vineet Abhishek, Chief Public Relations Officer (CPRO) of Western Railway, said.

With the vast stretch of land now cleared, the Bandra station area has visibly opened up, making commuting significantly easier for passengers.

Western Railway is now planning a major overhaul of the precinct to boost passenger comfort.

“Plans are being drawn up to introduce passenger-centric amenities in the Bandra area soon. A new layout will be designed to ensure smooth entry and exit points, making the commuter experience hassle-free. The new infrastructure will be developed keeping the dynamic needs and requirements of the passengers in mind,” a senior Western Railway official said.

The cleared land in Bandra holds immense strategic importance for the railway administration.

The removal of these long-standing encroachments has unlocked vital space for future infrastructure expansion and the introduction of additional train services. As one of the busiest railway corridors in the country, this section has proposed plans to augment passenger capacity.

Senior Railway officials noted that the availability of this land will now facilitate the introduction of additional long-distance trains, the creation of dedicated corridors for specific train operations, and a significant improvement in the punctuality of local suburban trains.

A Railway official also said that the reclaimed land is vital for multiple mega-railway projects aiming to ease Mumbai’s severe commuter congestion. This land clears the path to expand the fifth and sixth railway lines on the Santacruz–Mumbai Central corridor.

Rebuilding these railway lines allows the Railways to completely separate local suburban trains from long-distance outstation trains. This will immediately improve the punctuality of local trains.

The Railway official added that the cleared area will facilitate a better connection between the Bandra suburban station and the Bandra Terminus, allowing the Railways to run up to 50 new originating long-distance trains.

The cleared bottleneck will improve general access toward the nearby Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC), which is currently seeing massive upgrades, including the upcoming Mumbai–Ahmedabad Bullet Train station.

–IANS

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