Mumbai’s Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) project has crossed a critical milestone with the formal transfer of 19.43 hectares of forest land from Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), marking a major step forward for the city’s ambitious twin tunnel infrastructure. The transfer, cleared by the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC), paves the way for Phase III of the 12.2 km-long east-west corridor that seeks to ease congestion in North Mumbai.
The twin tunnels, forming the core of this phase, will stretch 4.7 km beneath the SGNP, with alignments placed entirely underground at depths ranging from 20 to 160 metres. Civic officials have reiterated that the tunnels will not impact the park’s surface ecology, terrain, or biodiversity. The project has been cleared under Section 2 of the Forest Conservation Act, 1980, with the condition that legal ownership of the land will remain categorised as ‘forest land’. In an effort to safeguard environmental interests and comply with green mandates, the Maharashtra government has pledged to implement compensatory afforestation over 19.5 hectares of non-forest land. This will include 14.95 hectares in Vasanvihira village and 4.55 hectares in Gondmohadi village of Chandrapur district, regions selected for their ecological viability and monitoring convenience.
State and civic officials involved in the project say the tunnel construction will be executed with modern tunnelling technology and designed with stringent safety protocols. Facilities such as air purification systems, advanced lighting, firefighting equipment, CCTV monitoring, and control rooms are part of the infrastructure blueprint. Emergency cross-passages between the tunnels will be positioned at 300-metre intervals, while additional space has been provisioned for utility corridors to accommodate stormwater pipelines and future water supply conduits. Once operational, the GMLR tunnel corridor is expected to revolutionise suburban travel, reducing the current 75-minute east-west commute to just 25 minutes. Apart from significant time savings, estimates indicate that the corridor will cut down carbon emissions by nearly 22,400 tonnes annually, primarily through reduced vehicle idling and congestion. Authorities argue that the project dovetails with Mumbai’s broader goals of low-emission urban mobility, improved air quality, and integrated transport infrastructure.
At present, Mumbai relies heavily on existing east-west connectors such as the Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR) and the Santacruz-Chembur Link Road (SCLR), both of which suffer from chronic congestion, especially during peak hours. Civic engineers note that the GMLR’s underground alignment was specifically chosen to bypass built-up zones, slums, and ecologically sensitive patches of land, offering a long-term solution to bottlenecks that urban surface road widening cannot always resolve. Nevertheless, the project is already under scrutiny from environmental groups. The history of public outcry over the felling of trees in the Aarey forest for Metro Line 3’s car shed has set a precedent. Activists warn that any development within protected forests, even if underground, poses threats to biodiversity and ecosystem stability. Some environmental advocates argue that tunnel boring activities could still disturb underground water channels and root systems essential to SGNP’s flora and fauna.
In response, government representatives assert that extensive environmental assessments were undertaken, and impact mitigation plans are in place. An official involved in the clearance process highlighted that the tunnelling method will be non-intrusive to the topsoil and surface green cover. The project will also be subject to regular monitoring and compliance audits, particularly during the excavation and construction phases. Urban planners have also raised questions about the effectiveness of large-scale infrastructure projects as standalone solutions. While the GMLR tunnel may reduce travel time, experts caution that without complementary investments in public transit, walkability, and non-motorised transport, induced demand could eventually lead to renewed congestion.
Nonetheless, the urgency for east-west connectivity in Mumbai remains real. The city’s population density, vehicular load, and fragmented urban geography continue to exert pressure on its limited transport corridors. Officials point out that the tunnel, by staying entirely underground, represents a strategic shift toward utilising sub-surface space to preserve overground green zones. The project, now backed by regulatory clearances and compensatory mechanisms, enters its next critical phase: procurement and civil construction. With land acquisition formally resolved, BMC is expected to invite bids from global tunnelling firms and initiate pre-construction works within the financial year. Experts suggest that timelines will depend heavily on monsoon impacts, material supply chains, and contractor mobilisation.
As the city moves forward with its largest sub-surface mobility intervention yet, the GMLR twin tunnel project underscores the complexities of urban infrastructure development in ecologically rich yet densely populated metropolises. It remains to be seen whether this delicate balance between green preservation and infrastructural expansion can set a new benchmark for sustainable urban growth.
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