BMC approaches traffic department on art street

Having given an in-principle approval to Yuva Sena chief Aditya Thackeray's plan to turn one of the streets near Kala Ghoda in South Mumbai into a weekend art gallery, the civic body on Tuesday wrote to city traffic police’s joint commissioner, Milind Bharambe, seeking the department’s mandatory approval for the proposal.

Thackeray's proposal, which was approved by municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta on Monday, involves keeping the street open only for pedestrians on weekends, meaning diverting the vehicular traffic that otherwise uses the street. The civic ‘A’ ward’s head, assistant municipal commissioner Kiran Dighavkar, on Tuesday wrote a letter to Mr Bharambe seeking the traffic department’s No Objection Certificate (NOC).

The BMC plans to divert traffic from K Dubash Street on the weekends and keep the entire street open for pedestrians only.

Last week, Mr Thackeray had submitted the proposal on the weekend-art at Kala Ghoda, expected to make Mumbai more attractive to tourists, to Mr Mehta. It entails cordoning off the road and demarcating spots for stalls that would exhibit artwork. The plan also includes giving space to performing artists.

Dighavkar told The Asian Age, -"As the plan requires traffic to be diverted during the weekends, we also need an approval from the traffic police. I have written to the joint commissioner of the traffic police Mr Bharambe. Once the NOC, from the traffic department comes through, we will start our work.-"

Even though Mr Thackeray had proposed that several streets in South Mumbai could be used for this purpose, K Dubash Street was chosen as it already hosts the annual Kala Ghoda art festival. “We need the approval of the traffic police not only for the concept, but also for cooperation from them during the weekends. Traffic on this street is already slim during the weekend, but we will need to find alternative routes for traffic, said Mr Dighavkar.