‘Facing constant noise, heat from Metro tower near our C’gate bldg’ | Mumbai News

Mumbai: Even as the opening of Metro 3 has boosted Mumbai’s transport network, for residents of the seven-decade-old Thakur Niwas—a six-storey residential building in Churchgate—it has brought constant noise and heat from the multi-storey ancillary Metro building that now stands right in front of them.When TOI visited the building on Thursday, frustrated residents said they weren’t opposed to the project and had all through the construction phase extended their cooperation but now are struggling to cope with the relentless sound and heat emitted from the tower. Shefali Kapadia, a resident, said if one would have to come and measure the decibel levels it would show up as well within the limits. “But it can’t go on as such all through the day. We are finding it difficult to even keep the windows and doors of our balcony open,” said Kapadia.The space where the ancillary building now stands and houses technical equipment was once a traffic island—as TOI had reported in Nov 2021—and is also known as the spot around which the iconic Hindi song ‘Babu Samjho Ishare’ was filmed.Kavita Ghatge, chairman of Thakur Niwas, said ever since work on the ancillary building started back in 2021 they kept raising the issue with the authorities. “They kept telling us it wouldn’t disturb the locality and now when the project is ready, we are expected to deal with this large structure accompanied by noise,” she said.Some residents said owing to political party offices in the area traffic in the area is already “out of control”. Lalan Kapadia, a third-floor resident, said theirs is the only residential building around. ” One can’t keep ACs on the entire day and would like to keep the doors and windows open for some fresh air. But rather we have to bear with hot air from morning till night.” When TOI reached out to MMRCL authorities, they said they have taken note of the concern. “The site team will conduct actual site readings to assess the situation, and appropriate action will be taken promptly if any irregularities are observed,” read a comment by MMRCL.