Mumbai's SV Road residents threaten to vote NOTA if metro isn’t underground

Around 3,000 residents from Juhu, Khar and Bandra took to the streets on Thursday threatening to vote 'None of the above (NOTA)' in the upcoming elections if their demand of constructing an underground metro between DN Nagar and Mandale is not fulfilled.

The proposed expansion of Metro-2B has this section on an elevated corridor, and the citizens say this would further choke the narrow SV Road section. This despite the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) ruling out an underground section, citing technical and financial constraints.

"The government wants to construct an elevated metro on a road that is already narrow with slow moving traffic. The government is adamant on not going underground, because it will be costly. However, cost is just another excuse, and we are going to boycott all our representatives by voting NOTA in the upcoming elections," said Vile Parle resident Kirit Mehta.

Juhu resident Pankaj Sanghvi said, "We want to tell officials that if the metro isn't underground, we will not give them our vote."

Sandra Shroff, originally from London but who lives in Khar currently, was also part of the protest on Friday. "SV Road is already congested will get more choked if the elevated Metro comes up here. In London, we have an underground metro corridor that is doing great, and there is still scope for its expansion, so many years after its construction," she said.