Mumbai: Citizen activists are up in arms over the proposed construction of the ‘Multi-Level Robotic Parking Tower’ (MRPT) outside Matunga Central Railway station, citing the disadvantages and risks to the common public the project would create.

The Petition Group Foundation has written to the authorities , including the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) and Central Railway raising strong objections against the MRPT, which is proposed to be 23 floors tall with a capacity to park 546 vehicles. The project is undertaken by the BMC and recently received an NOC from the Railways.

Sources said the entire project is aimed at helping a builder who is building a commercial complex and needs adequate parking for his customers. The cost of the project is approximately Rs 85 crore and the work is expected to start soon. "The activists are welcome to raise their objections. As far as the project holds all required permissions, there is no hurdle to start the work," a source to the contractor said.

The letter written by the Petition Group highlights that the MRPT rather than easing problems like traffic congestion, would increase the woes of the locals, shoppers, and more importantly thousands of railway commuters.

“For constructing the MRPT the BMC proposes to remove the Matunga Police Beat Chowky outside the railway station. The police chowky is a great deterrent to anti-social elements in the area, especially considering that Matunga East is a hub of educational institutions like Podar College, Ruia College, Welingkar Institute, VJTI, Khalsa College etc. The area is filled with students all day long and the beat chowky maintains law and order,” GR Vora, trustee of the Petition Group, told FPJ on Monday.

“In case of any disaster at or outside the railway station, there will be hardly any space for the commuters to run for their lives,” Vora said. “We have urged the Railways to revoke the permission granted to the BMC given the larger public interest. If we fail to get an appropriate response, we will file a PIL Bombay High Court,” Vora said.

On November 27, officers from the Railways and BMC are scheduled to conduct a joint inspection of the site before construction work begins. Responding to the objections raised by the citizens, the Chief Spokesperson for the Central Railway, Swanil Nila said, “The BMC had asked for the NOC in 2023 for the multi-level parking project. However, then all criteria were not fulfilled. After the criteria laid down by the Railways were fulfilled, the NOC was given in 2024.”

The citizens are objecting to the proposed removal of the beat chowky, chopping off of 6-8 full-grown trees, uglification of the heritage area, and lack of provision for escape route in case of disaster among others.