Line 2 (Mumbai Metro)

A 38.24 km long Colaba-Bandra–Charkop line was proposed as Line 2 in the original Mumbai Metro master plan unveiled by the MMRDA in 2004. A 13.37 km long Bandra-Kurla–Mankhurd line and a 7.5 km line from Charkop to Dahisar were proposed as Line 3 and Line 4, respectively, in the same plan.[3] Line 2 was originally planned to run from Colaba to Charkop, with Colaba to Mahalaxmi as underground. However, the underground stretch that was extended in plan up to Bandra (around 20 km) was changed to Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd (about 35 km), all elevated, primarily due to cost considerations,[4] in the updated Mumbai Metro master plan revised by the MMRDA in 2012.[5] In the updated master plan, the proposed Charkop–Bandra–Mankhurd and Charkop–Dahisar lines were merged into a single Dahisar–Bandra–Mankhurd line, which would have been 32 km and had 27 stations. This was planned to be the second corridor of the Mumbai Metro. Like Line 1, this corridor was also proposed to be constructed on a public private partnership (PPP) model.[6]

Then President Pratibha Patil launched the project in August 2009. The MMRDA appointed Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra), in consortium with SNC Lavolin Inc Canada and Reliance Communication,[7] through an international competitive bidding process to carry out this phase of the project, and the concession agreement was signed with the RInfra-led consortium in January 2010.[8] The project was proposed to be implemented on build–operate–transfer (BOT) basis for a concession period of 35 years with an extension clause of another 10 years.[7] The MMRDA estimated the project would cost ₹8,250 crore (US$1.2 billion), while Reliance Infrastructure estimated it would cost ₹ 11,000 crore.[9] Construction was planned to begin in August 2010 and be completed by mid-2013.[10] However, construction work had yet to begin by December 2012, leading to calls for Line 2 to be cancelled outright.[8]

The line's construction was handicapped by the lack of available land for carsheds at Charkop and Mankhurd; Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) laws forbade construction on the land that had been selected by the MMRDA. The Union Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) refused to give clearance for the depots.[11] MMRDA officials plan to solve the problem by shifting the location of the proposed rake depot to Malwani near Malad. The 19 hectares (0.19 km²) plot does not come under the purview of the CRZ laws and therefore will not require environmental clearances.[12] The MMRDA has said that they have not ruled out an underground line, claiming that they had considered a combination of an elevated and underground alignment but had deemed it impossible due to the large land requirement for ramps and slip roads.[13]

On 6 September 2012, the MMRDA sent a letter to Reliance Infrastructure asking them to start work on the metro immediately or face legal action.[14][15] In response to the letter, RInfra blamed the government and MMRDA for the delayed construction work. They said that the government had failed to fulfill its contractual obligation to provide the necessary land, right of way permits and clearances.[16][17][18][19] On 8 February 2013, then RInfra CEO Sumit Banerjee claimed that the project had not advanced because the MMRDA had failed to fulfill its share of the responsibilities.[20][21] The state government had since been considering alternative sites for the depot, which might have led to complete change in the alignment of the line and could have required re-bidding for the project.[22] On 9 August 2013, DNA reported that an MMRDA official had informed them that a 27-acre plot that was to be used as the casting yard for Line 2, was planned to be marked for use as a casting yard for Line 3. The paper called the move "a clear indication" that Line 2 "will not take off in the near future."[23] Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan told the media on 30 August 2013 that "it is now clear that Mumbai's Metro II project will now not happen."[24]

In January 2014, then MP from Mumbai North Sanjay Nirupam told The Times of India that the existing contract awarded to Reliance Infrastructure would be cancelled and a revised tender would be invited. The decision to do so was taken at a meeting between the city's parliamentarians and Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan. The terminal of Line 2 was extended from Charkop end to Dahisar, making the new route the Dahisar-Bandra-Mankhurd corridor. According to Nirupam, "It would be easier to shift the depot and casting yard to Dahisar as a land there belongs to the Centre. The present Charkop land has run into environmental hurdles turning the project into a non-starter since 2009 despite contracts being awarded." The Dahisar land belongs to the civil aviation department and can be easily made available for the project as it has not been included in any aviation expansion plans. Reliance had previously informed the State government that lack of environmental clearance to the Charkop depot, absence of permission from the aviation department for the Metro's elevated track in Juhu, huge network of underground and overhead utilities and no higher FSI for station's commercial development made the project financially unviable.[25]

On 13 November 2014, Reliance Infrastructure announced that it had terminated the agreement between the MMTPL and the Maharashtra government. RInfra stated, "Due to non-fulfilment of various critical obligations by Maharashtra government and Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), the project could not take off. Even after four years, despite the best efforts of the Maharashtra government, various project impediments could not be resolved." The MMRDA issued a statement confirming that the agreement was terminated with mutual consent. No party will bare any cost as a result of the termination and the state government will return a bank guarantee of ₹ 160 crore. The MMRDA also clarified that the Line 2 project had not been cancelled and will be constructed by the Mumbai Metro Railway Corp. Ltd (MMRCL) under an engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) model.[26][27]

In September 2013, the MMRDA appointed RITES to study the feasibility of constructing the proposed 32-km metro line underground. RITES also studied the feasibility of extending the corridor and merging the 7.5-km Charkop-Dahisar metro, proposed as a separate line, with this project. RITES submitted its final report to the MMRDA in the last week of May 2014, concluding that constructing the metro underground and extending it up to Dahisar was feasible.[28][29][30] The merged Dahisar-Bandra-Mankhurd line would be 40.2 km long and have 37 underground stations. The estimated cost of construction of this line is ₹ 28,900 crore, 134% higher than the originally estimated costs of ₹ 7,660 crore for the Charkop-Bandra-Mankhurd line and ₹ 4,680 crore for the Charkop-Dahisar corridor. RITES proposed the construction of a major car depot at Oshiwara and a minor car depot at Mandalay, Mankhurd on sites that were a mix of publicly and privately held land.[31] The extension of the line to Mankhurd would resolve the land acquisition issues as land was available for the construction of a depot at Mankhurd.[32]

In June 2015, the MMRDA proposed a new line from BKC to Mankhurd.[33] On 15 June 2015, the MMRDA announced that it would implement Line 2 of the metro in three parts - Dahisar East-DN Nagar (Metro 2A), DN Nagar-BKC (Metro 2B), and BKC-Mankhurd (Metro 2C), and also appointed the DMRC to conduct a feasibility study and detailed project report for the line.[34][35] On 1 July 2015, it was announced that MMRDA was allotted a 22-acre plot in Mankhurd adjacent to the Sion Panvel highway for the Metro carshed. The land was under dispute between the MMRDA and the State Home Ministry for the construction of a Jail.[36]

The plan was later modified to build the line in two sections - Dahisar-DN Nagar (Metro 2A) and DN Nagar-Mankhurd (Metro 2B). Metro 2A was approved by the Maharashtra Government on 6 October 2015.[37] In November 2015, the Department of Economic Affairs (DEA) cleared the MMRDA's request to secure a loan from the Asian Development Bank (ADB).[38]

The Maharashtra Cabinet approved the Metro 2B corridor on 27 September 2016. Half of the project cost will be funded by the Centre and the State Government, while the remaining will be financed through loans from the Asian Development Bank and New Development Bank.[39] The Metro 2B corridor will be 23.5 km long and have 22 stations. The project is estimated to cost ₹ 10,986 crore,[40][41] including land acquisition cost of Rs 1,274 crore.[32]

The corridor will be 18.5 km long and connect Dahisar West to DN Nagar. The corridor will have 16 stations - Dahisar East, Upper Dahisar, Kandarpada, IC Colony, Eksar LIC Colony, Don Bosco (Borivali West), Kastur Park (Shimpoli, then Shimpawali), Ekta Nagar, Kandivali, Charkop, Malad, Kasturi Park (Malad), Bangur Nagar (Goregaon), Oshiwara, Samartha Nagar, Shastri Nagar and D.N. Nagar (Andheri West). It will have an interchange with Line 1 at DN Nagar and Line 7 at Dahisar. Line 2B will connect DN Nagar to Mankhurd via BKC. Line 2A is estimated to cost around ₹6,410 crores.[32] The DMRC was appointed as the implementing agency for the project. The DMRC floated two tenders for the designing and construction of the corridor. The first package includes the design and construction of a viaduct and 8 elevated stations - Dahisar East, Anand Nagar (Dahisar), Rushi Sankul, IC Colony, Eksar LIC Colony, Don Bosco (Borivali West), Kastur Park (Shimpoli, then Shimpawali), Ekta Nagar, Kandivali. The second package includes the remaining viaduct and 8 stations - Charkop, Malad, Kasturi Park (Malad), Bangur Nagar (Goregaon), Oshiwara, Samartha Nagar, Shastri Nagar and D.N. Nagar (Andheri West). JKumar Infra Pvt. Ltd was awarded both packages in June 2016, and carried out civil work, including viaducts and stations. The cost of the packages was estimated as ₹ 700 crores each, with JKumar Infra bidding below the reserve price.[43]

Soil testing work along the corridor commenced in July 2016.[44] Construction on the corridor began in November 2016. As of 13 September 2017, 77% of the soil investigation work for pier foundation is completed, 76% of barricading work is completed, 37% piles completed, 19% pile caps completed, 110 piers are cast, 75 pier caps erected, 26 U girders erected and work pile foundation work commenced for all 17 stations.[45] The corridor was scheduled to be commissioned in 2019, but delays in procuring rolling stock will push the deadline to 2020.[46]

In April 2019, the MMRDA issued tenders for the rooftop solar PV power projects at stations on Metro 2A.[47]

The foundation stone for the Metro 2B was laid by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on 24 December 2016.[48] The MMRDA invited bids for civil work on Metro 2B on 4 January 2017.[49][50][51] Metro 2B was divided into four packages - ESIC Nagar to Khira Nagar, Saraswat Nagar to ILFS, MTNL Metro to Chembur, and Diamond Garden to Mandale.[52] Metro 2B was tendered alongside Metro 4. L&T, Afcons Infrastructure, Tata, NCC and JMC, Reliance Infrastructure-RdE, JKumar Group, ITD Cementation, CHEC-TPL bid for packages on both Metro 2B and Metro 4. Simplex Infrastructures and a consortium of GHEC-RCC-JV-China placed bids only for some packages of Metro 2B. A total of 10 firms and/or consortia submitted bids for the two lines.[53][54]

The MMRDA utilized a drone to carry out survey work for Metro 2B. The drones were fitted with a 360-degree camera that provides up to 3 millimeter accuracy. The aerial survey takes less time than a regular survey, achieves greater accuracy and helps protect against false claims for compensation.[55]

Construction began in April 2018. MMRDA has awarded contract of construction of viaduct and stations for package 1 to simplex. This package includes section between DN nagar to BKC.[56]