Art Street: Mulund bridge in Mumbai’s Eastern Suburbs gets decked up in ‘green’ – The Indian Express

A special committee formed by the civic body scrutinised and finalised the designs for each of the 11 bridges. The design for Mulund bridge was based on the theme of nature, owing to its proximity of the area to the eastern side of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP).

The decoration is done under Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Mumbai Beautification project.

The project to paint the 11 bridges was conceptualised in 2022, during the time of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government. The total cost was estimated at Rs 7.5 crore. It was then sent for approval to the then standing committee of the civic body. However, the special committee for approval of designs was formed only in October, after which the painting works started.

Since Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s Mumbai Beautification project was proposed in mid-2022, the BMC’s original project for the aesthetic enhancement of the 11 bridges was eventually merged with the beautification project.

Apart from the “nature” theme, Goregaon-Mulund Link Road is decorated along the lines of “abstract art”.

A senior civic body official from the bridges department said that the paintings on Mulund bridge are a pilot of a larger project. “The 11 bridges for beautification were selected randomly by the civic body. Initially, this was conceptualised for 11 bridges, and later in the year, we merged it with the Mumbai Beautification project.”

The design for Mulund bridge was based on the theme of nature, owing to its proximity of the area to the eastern side of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP).

The committee formed for selecting designs for these paintings comprises two senior officials and a faculty from the JJ School of Arts. Apart from the East-West bridge in Mulund, other bridges that were selected include the Ghatkopar Mankhurd Link Road, Santacruz Chembur Link Road, a bridge at Amar Mahal, and a few patches of the Eastern Freeway.

“While we selected nature as the theme for the Mulund bridge, we have selected an abstract theme based in dark shades for the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR), as the area is reeling under pollution and has many slum pockets. Each theme has been vetted by the committee,” the civic body official said.

The Mumbai Beautification project was announced in July 2022 at an approximate cost of Rs 1,700 crore, and CM Eknath Shinde on December 8 launched over 500 projects as part of the project in an inauguration ceremony held at Gateway of India.