The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) will launch its town planning office in Mahape on April 16, to further its ambitious Smart City project next to the Mumbai-Pune Expressway.

R Mopalwar, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director of MSRDC, disclosed this while speaking about Smart Cities project of MSRDC, on similar lines of Cidco’s Naina (Navi Mumbai Airport Influence Notified Area).

City developers have welcomed the entry of MSRDC into this new and emerging scenario of making Smart Cities in Raigad, just like Cidco has been doing over the years.

As the 89-km long Expressway will be the nerve centre of these planned Smart Cities by MSRDC, its phase-1 will include 67 villages in Khalapur taluka and 17 in Panvel, but will exclude those under the announced Naina project of Cidco.

An MSRDC official said that things are going to move fast in the weeks ahead, once their Navi Mumbai (town planning) office is set up where they can discuss   their blueprints for the Smart Cities. An expert consultant is also likely to be appointed by MSRDC in this endeavour