After the MMRDA handed over the area to the civic body last year, it aims to provide better facilities including a maternity home, a school and rebuild a dispensary for residents
Gorai beach is very popular but locals don't have many civic facilities. File pic
After struggling for years to get basic health and education facilities, the residents of Gorai island will get a maternity home, a school and a new dispensary.
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The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to build the home, school and reconstruct a 100-year-old dispensary. Till 2017, MMRDA was the planning authority for the island. Last year, it handed over the area to BMC, which has made residents hopeful of the change.
Gorai Island, a very popular tourist destination for its beach, Essel World and pagoda, does not have a hospital. The nearest major health centres are some 27 km away in Kandivli and Borivli.
Mehta's orders
On Tuesday, municipal commissioner Ajoy Mehta visited Gorai to take stock of existing civic facilities. After finding the existing dispensary which was built nearly 100 years back, in pathetic condition, Mehta ordered officials from the local ward to reconstruct and upgrade it. The only school which has four classrooms and is also not in good condition, will also be housed in a new four-storey building.
An official from the municipal commissioner's office said, "As there is no BMC-run maternity home on the island, the civic body has decided to construct a new facility. There is a plot reserved for the construction of a school, but a maternity home and dispensary is urgently required. We will change the reservation of the plot and this will be taken up on priority basis."
The official added, "Instructions have been given for better water supply and to meet the requirement of toilet facility. A new underground pipeline will be laid for water supply."
Better infrastructure
For years, residents of Gorai island have been demanding better civic facilities. The dispute between the two agencies - MMRDA and BMC - had inconvenienced them.
Former local corporator Shiva Shetty, who had been following up on the issues of Gorai said, "In the past many years I have written multiple letters to BMC as well as MMRDA, to give citizens better civic facilities, at least in the health sector. Now, as the area has been transferred to BMC's jurisdiction we are hopeful of getting better facilities. Gorai has several tourist places but in terms of infrastructure for villagers there is very little."
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