Shiv Sena-ruled Thane Municipal Corporation rejects land transfer proposal for Ahmedabad-Mumbai Bullet train

Thane: In a setback for Ahmedabad-Mumbai Bullet train, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream project, the Shiv Sena-led Thane Municipal Corporation has rejected a proposal for handing over land for it in the district. The decision comes amid a dispute between the Sena-led Maharashtra government and the Union government over allotment of land for Mumbai Metro in Kanjurmarg. A proposal by the National High Speed Rail Corporation Ltd (NHSRC), which is executing the Ahmedabad-Mumbai Bullettrain project, for 3,800 square metres of land near Shil-Daighar was rejected at a meeting of the TMC’s general body on Wednesday, said a civic official. The NHSRC had requested the TMC to transfer the land title to it for a compensation of Rs 6 crore. A proposal in this regard came before the general body for the fifth time on Wednesday and was rejected. On earlier occasions it had been kept in abeyance. While the BJP did not react in the house, later party leader Sanjay Waghule critisised the decision. The general body rejected a land proposal for the Bullet train but passed a resolution for the Light Rail Transport for the city, he said. The Maharashtra government has decided to shift the site of a car shed for Mumbai Metro to Kanjurmarg in eastern Mumbai, but the Union government has moved the High Court, contending the land in Kanjurmarg belongs to its Salt Department and not the state. The HC recently stayed the land allotment. The previous BJP-led government had chosen Aarey Colony area for car shed despite opposition from green activists, a decision the present regime reversed.