Mumbai: Almost three months after the BMC floated a Rs 3,000-crore tender to construct the 69-metre Gargai dam near Ogada village in Wada Taluka of Palghar District, along with a 2.2-metre diameter tunnel that will carry water to the Modak Sagar reservoir, the proposal is set to come before the civic standing committee for final approval this week.Officials said the lowest bidder was Soma Consortium, which undertook construction of the Middle Vaitarna dam on River Vaitarna. Once commissioned, Gargai will add 440 million litres per day to Mumbai’s water supply, making it the city’s first new reservoir since Middle Vaitarna became operational in 2014. The BMC is eyeing a 2029 completion, a year that coincides with the next Lok Sabha and assembly polls.During the recent budget presentation before the civic standing committee, municipal commissioner said tender for this work was invited in Jan 2026, and actual work is expected to start by March 2026. A provision of Rs 437.51 crore was proposed in budget 2026-27 for the above works and other incidental works of the Gargai project. Officials said the first year post-work order will go into securing permissions and creating infrastructure for relocating six affected villages. Dam construction is planned in the second year, followed by installation of electrical systems in the third year. The project includes a 1,200-kilowatt hydropower unit, intended to offset the dam’s electricity costs.The project comes with significant environmental implications. Around 3 lakh trees must be transplanted across neighbouring villages, with two directly affected by the dam and four required for tree relocation. Compensatory afforestation was proposed across 658 hectares in Washim, Chandrapur and Hingoli.
