Overview
- This week Western Railway formally sought central government clearance after the Railway Board approved Kandivali–Borivali integration and officials showed the layout to the railway minister.
- The plan depends on transfer of about 65 acres held by the Central Ordnance Depot between Kandivali and Malad and the Defence Ministry has so far declined to release the site, citing active occupation and future defence plans.
- Preliminary blueprints call for a full long‑distance terminus with nine 625‑metre platforms, six pit lines, nine stabling lines, shunting necks and two sick‑line sheds to service long‑distance and next‑generation trains.
- Western Railway says the Kandivali site could handle roughly 48–50 pairs of long‑distance trains and would ease severe congestion at south‑Mumbai terminals such as Mumbai Central, Bandra Terminus and CSMT.
- If the Defence land is not cleared the project will remain stalled because multi‑agency approvals are required and earlier technical access was limited during a joint site inspection on February 11, 2025, which allowed only two railway officials inside.