INDIA’S FIRST UNDERSEA TUNNEL BY 2023 IN MUMBAI

INDIA’S FIRST UNDERSEA TUNNEL BY 2023 IN MUMBAI

Context

Mumbai will be home to India’s first undersea tunnel by 2023.

Details:

• It will have a length of 2.07 km of which a kilometre will be under the sea.
• It is being built as part of the Mumbai Coastal Road Project, a 10.58-km stretch starting from the Marine Drive promenade to the Worli-end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link.
• It is the 1st undersea road tunnel in India that will pass through the Arabian Sea near Girgaon Chowpatty.
• The tunnel is being made using 'Malva', India’s biggest Tunnel Boring Machine (TBM). Soldiers of 17th Century Maratha king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj were called 'mavlas'. The machine, which is operated by a team of 30 people, has a diameter of 12.19 metres.
• At 20 metres below the sea bed, Mumbai’s undersea tunnel is being constructed at a relatively shallow depth.
• In comparison, the English Channel Tunnel at its deepest point is 75 metres below the sea bed, while Japan’s Seikan Tunnel lies over 100 metres below the seabed.
• It will begin from Priyadarshini Park and end at Netaji Subhash Road in Marine Drive and will be 20 metres below the seabed.