Smart City works outside Kalyan West railway station remain incomplete nearly eight years after they began, prompting a local organisation to warn of a public agitation if the pending work is not completed within three months.
The Human Assistance Service Board has written to the commissioner of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), seeking urgent action in the station precinct. The organisation said the prolonged construction has made daily movement difficult for commuters, pedestrians, autorickshaw users and other road users.
Kalyan railway station is a heavily used transport node, serving thousands of daily local-train passengers as well as people travelling by state transport buses and other vehicles. According to the representation submitted to the MMRDA, the slow pace of Smart City development work has contributed to severe congestion outside the station and made it difficult for pedestrians and drivers to move through the area.
The organisation also drew attention to what it described as serious conditions at autorickshaw stands and the volume of vehicles outside the station. Work continuing at multiple locations has made walking particularly difficult for children, senior citizens, women and patients, the representation said. It also linked the prolonged disruption to increased insecurity, crime and pollution in the area, though the report does not provide separate figures for these claims.
The letter follows repeated assurances from political leaders, ministers and municipal officials that the works would be completed or brought back on track. The local organisation said those assurances had not resulted in completion of the project. It has now sought immediate administrative steps to restore public convenience around the station.
The issue is significant because the station frontage functions as an interchange between suburban rail, buses, autorickshaws, private vehicles and walking routes. Delays in works at such a location affect more than the construction site itself: they can disrupt the movement of commuters arriving or leaving the station and intensify conflicts between pedestrians and vehicles. The representation specifically highlighted congestion and the difficulty of crossing or walking through the affected roads.
The organisation’s secretary, Ammar Qazi, submitted the letter along with other office-bearers. President Shankarrao Avhad, trustee Sanjay Vajpayee, Dr Girish Latke, Professor Mahendra Bhavsar, Ravikumar Dhomse, Damodar Kabra, Prashant Mhatre, Sharad Ghuge, Prashant Toshniwal and Yogesh Shah publicly supported the demand for urgent action.
Residents and passengers, including women and senior citizens, have expressed support for the organisation’s intervention, according to the report. The administration has been asked to take immediate measures for public convenience. The next stated milestone is the three-month deadline issued by the organisation, after which it has warned that a public agitation will be launched if the works remain incomplete.
