Malabar Hill viewing gallery develops cracks, retaining wall tilts towards cliff IN SOBO

MUMBAI: Within a year of its inauguration, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) viewing gallery at Malabar Hill has developed cracks along its rear staircase and base of the building, while the ground in its rear veranda and the compound’s retaining wall are tilting towards the steep cliff.

The Pramod Navalkar viewing gallery, built at a cost of ₹8 crore in a year, was inaugurated in October 2018. It is a popular tourist spot as it gives a bird’s eye view of south Mumbai’s west coast along Marine Drive and Nariman Point. Taking note of its poor condition, the BMC has now undertaken work to reinstate the tilting retaining wall and boost the structural stability.

Ravi Raja, leader of Opposition in the BMC, has demanded the municipal commissioner conduct an inquiry into the matter. “It is a very serious matter. It happened within a short span of the building being constructed. The commissioner should conduct an inquiry to check if the work was done properly,” he told HT. “I spoke to officers from the department concerned on Tuesday, and received a copy of the structural engineer’s report listing the structural stability work needed to hold up the viewing gallery’s retaining wall. It was submitted to BMC two days ago.”

The report, a copy of which is with HT, lists five stages of repair. The work was on when HT visited the site on Tuesday morning. The staff at the site explained that the work involves inserting hollow metal rods at the base of the retaining wall and filling them with cement. These will act as anchors and prevent the retaining wall from slipping. After this, a set of iron beams will be placed to support the base and top of the wall.

HT contacted civic officers from the department concerned and in charge of the maintenance of the building, who refused to comment or reveal any details. HT called and sent a text message to municipal commissioner Praveen Pardeshi, who did not respond.

Sanjay Shirke, an activist

from the area, said, “This is very dangerous, as it indicates the BMC did not carry out the construction work with due diligence. The civic body should have tested the stability of the cliff, composition of the layers under it and the retaining wall. This puts the lives of so many tourists in danger.”