MUMBAI, March 20 -- The Maharashtra Maritime Board (MMB) has unveiled an ambitious plan to develop a 36-route water metro network across the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, aimed at carrying up to 18 million passengers annually. The proposal received in-principle approval from chief minister Devendra Fadnavis at a meeting held on March 17. Modelled on the successful water metro system in Kochi, Kerala, the project is based on a detailed report prepared by Kochi Metro Rail Ltd and submitted earlier this month. Mumbai has experimented with water transport in the past, including hovercraft services in the 1990s and a Belapur-Gateway route launched two years ago, both of which were discontinued due to high costs and poor response. Under the current proposal, 21 routes covering 125 km will be developed in the initial phase with 25 terminals, with daily ridership projected at 44,000 passengers and annual ridership at 18 million. The project will be implemented through a public-private partnership model, with civil, navigational and safety infrastructure estimated at Rs.3,436 crore, and marine assets, including 207 vessels to be operated by private players, costing Rs.3,156 crore. An operations control centre will be set up at Kalher near Bhiwandi, with a backup facility at Fountain Junction in Mira-Bhayander, along with a dedicated boatyard. The project management consultant is expected to be appointed within four months, followed by environmental clearances and tendering, after which a private partner will be selected and vessel procurement and viability gap funding processes will begin. The project will be executed in three phases, with phase one targeted for completion by 2029, phase two by 2030 and the final phase by 2036. Several routes have already been identified, including Versova-Madh, Marve-Manori, Gorai-Borivali, Gateway-Mandwa, Belapur-Elephanta and Thal-Khanderi, along with multiple Ro-Pax and tourism-oriented services....