In a city like Mumbai, ease of
commutation tops the wish-list of almost everybody. ‘Traffic Jam’ – is one of those words that is
dreaded by all. To solve this woe of the Mumbaikars, Gurudas Kamat in 2009 made
a plea to have an Elevated Railway System for Mumbai. To ensure expansion of
the Railway Network, he wanted this elevated system for both the Western and
the Central Railway. Kamat ji was sure that this step will ease the problems of
the commuters.
Elevated railway system is of immense
importance especially if one considers a metropolitan city such as Mumbai. It
is a concept which has been successfully implemented in countries like Netherlands.
In a land deficit city like Mumbai, the concept could prove to be really
beneficiary if implemented. Some of you might would confuse the elevated
railway system with the metro or the elevated monorail that has been recently
introduced in Mumbai however, it is entirely different from both. An elevated railway is a rapid transit railway with
the tracks above street level on a viaduct or other steel, concrete or brick
structure. It is somewhat like the metro, only much bigger and better.
Initially, the elevated railway was
implemented only for the Western line but it was Kamat ji’s foresightedness
that led to the approval of the east and the central line too. His consistent follow-up has yielded
results and an approximate Rs 21000 Crore Elevated Railway for Mumbai on the
Western Railway from Virar to Churchgate and an Elevated Railway from Panvel to
CST has also been cleared by Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, the Railway
Minister and Chief Minister of Maharashtra Shri Prithviraj Chavan.
The Chief Minister too has
acknowledged Kamat ji’s contribution to getting the Elevated Railway Project
for Mumbai time and again. Kamat ji has ensured commencement of a number of
long distance trains to meet the demands of Mumbaikars, travelling to the
farthest corners in the South, North and Eastern parts of the state.
This is why Kamat ji is a highly
respected MP. Once he decides on a project that will help the people, he never
gives up. Kamat ji pursues the cause till the very end and makes sure that the
project is fully implemented.
