Mumbai’s new Vidyavihar East-West Flyover is expected to open to traffic shortly, but a dispute over its name has emerged before the infrastructure project becomes operational. Shiv Sena (UBT) has sought to name the bridge after actor and social worker Nana Patekar, while BJP MLA Parag Shah has proposed naming it after commercial pilot Captain Smit Machhar.
The two-lane flyover connects Ramchandra Chemburkar Marg with Lal Bahadur Shastri Marg near Vidyavihar railway station. It is 650 metres long, including a 100-metre section that passes over the railway tracks. The project also includes a connecting route between the flyover and the station’s footpaths.
The dispute moved into the civic administration after Shiv Sena (UBT) representatives met Mumbai Mayor Ritu Tawde and submitted a memorandum to Municipal Commissioner Ashwini Bhide. The party has argued that Patekar’s contribution to the film industry and his work for farmers and people in need through the Naam Foundation justify the naming request. Banners supporting the proposal were also put up on both sides of the bridge on Friday, according to the report.
Shah has separately proposed that the flyover be named after Captain Smit Machhar, a commercial pilot whom he credited with helping thwart an attempted aircraft hijacking. Shah described Machhar as a Ghatkopar resident and said the proposal was intended to honour his service and courage. He also said the final decision would rest with the authorities and that he did not want to turn the naming process into a controversy.
The infrastructure has been designed to address more than road connectivity. The works include the reconstruction of the railway ticket counters, the station master’s office and staircases on both sides of the station. A pedestrian route within the railway premises has been linked to the flyover through stairways, while noise barriers have been installed along the structure.
Tawde said the naming issue should not become a political matter. She said she would discuss the matter with Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis before an appropriate name is decided. The remarks indicate that the naming decision remains pending even as the flyover approaches its opening.
Once opened, the project will provide a direct east-west connection across the railway corridor and alter pedestrian and vehicular movement around Vidyavihar station. Its operational impact will depend not only on the bridge’s traffic opening but also on how the rebuilt station facilities, pedestrian links and connecting road are integrated into daily use. The next formal step is a decision by the civic and state authorities on the flyover’s name.
