Gateway of India yacht rides could become cheaper for passengers and operators if a proposal to halve the pontoon fee from around Rs 90 to Rs 50 per passenger is accepted. The proposal is being discussed between private yacht operators, Mumbai Port Authority and the Royal Bombay Yacht Club amid a dispute over access to Jetty No 5 and the charges for reaching vessels.
State assembly speaker Rahul Narvekar, who is mediating between the Yacht Operators Welfare Association (YOWA) and the port authority, said efforts were under way to reach an agreement. “We are trying our best to arrive at a golden mean wherein both parties will be satisfied. We will ensure that it is halved from the existing rates,” he said.
Sources in the Mumbai Port Authority and the Royal Bombay Yacht Club confirmed that a proposal along these lines was under discussion. No official response had been received from either organisation at the time of the report.
The dispute followed the closure of Jetty No 5, opposite the Taj Mahal Palace hotel, after it was declared structurally unsafe. An iron gate has blocked access to the concrete slipway that operators say they had used without charge for years. Operators have consequently become dependent on a paid floating pontoon to reach their boats.
YOWA has approached the Bombay High Court, challenging the pontoon tariff and the arrangement under which the Royal Bombay Yacht Club manages the facility. The association has sought removal of the gate, restoration of free slipway access and permission to use other jetties at the Gateway of India.
According to YOWA’s petition, operators used the concrete slipway free of charge from 2006. A floating pontoon was introduced in 2019 as an optional facility, with tariffs approved by the Tariff Authority for Major Ports in December 2020. The association argues that the pontoon installed in 2025 is a different structure, with a different owner, cost and user base, and has questioned whether the earlier tariff can automatically apply to it without fresh approval or a valid legal basis.
YOWA joint secretary Chetan Rane said operators were willing to pay legitimate charges but wanted rates comparable with those imposed on catamarans. He said a speedboat’s minimum passenger tariff typically ranged from Rs 500 to Rs 600, and that a Rs 90 to Rs 100 payment to the port authority could reduce margins or eventually be passed on to tourists.
Some members of the yacht community said they were willing to pay applicable charges and GST and shift to ticketing instead of cash transactions, provided the costs remained affordable. They also said passenger safety, vessel safety and security were their primary concerns.
The petition has raised additional questions about the Royal Bombay Yacht Club’s role in controlling access and collecting fees, alleging that the arrangement was made without a public tender or transparent competitive process. YOWA has also alleged that private boat owners were denied access to Jetty Nos 1 to 4.
The association has sought disclosure of the structural assessment for Jetty No 5, an independent audit, time-bound repairs and information on agreements, permissions and accounts linked to the pontoon. Any reopening of the slipway would depend on a technical assessment and the required safety clearance.
