Virar East

 

A breezy place with natural greenery, tropical climate, and beautiful beaches, Virar East is like a picnic spot. It is home to the famous Arnala Beach! No wonder it is a prime tourist area in Mumbai.

 

Virar is a cosmopolitan suburb belonging to Mumbai Metropolitan Region and a city on its own, located at the extreme end of northern Mumbai. The famous Virar Railway Station is situated here. This region also boasts of a flourishing real estate market, with major construction players like HDIL and Rustomjee implementing their architectural plans here.

 

Virar East is home to many educational institutions, hospitals, amusement parks, banks, shopping malls, and restaurants. One can also find various famous religious places here.

 

The Virar East Skywalk, which is 285-m long walkway over the Totale lake, serves as a tool to view the scenic beauty of the locality. The Virar garden near the railway station is also a major attraction. Also called Nagarpalika Garden, it has a beautiful collection of birds, as well as boating facility.

 

Connectivity and Transit Points

 

Because Virar East is a prime tourist spot in Mumbai Metropolitan Region, connectivity is its high point. The predominant mode of transportation here, is trains. Virar Railway station is a terminus station that runs on the Western Line of Mumbai Suburban Railway Network. This crowded station is the only one from Mumbai that connects to the northern railway stations like Palghar, Saphale, and Dahanu. Here, one can find trains frequently moving between several localities in and around Mumbai.

 

The locality is also well connected by roads and corporation buses. For the ones who specifically look for autos, it is easy to avail both exclusive and share auto-rickshaws. There are no specific city taxis, but there are call taxi facilities easily available, catering to the needs of different economic classes.

 

Major Landmarks

 

●       Virar Railway Station

●       Virar East Totale Lake

●       The Virar East Skywalk

●       Nagarpalika Garden

●       Great Escape Water Park

●       NGV High School

●       Aastha Hospital

●       Gandhi Chowk Bus Stop

 

Factors for Growth in the Past

 

Tourism has been a major plus point for Virar East in the past. The famous Arnala beach, Rajodi beach, Nagarpalika Garden, Totale Lake, skywalk, and various Hindu and Jain temples and churches are among the prime attractions here that led to the development of tourism.

 

Various temples like Jivdani temple, Jain temple, Vajreshwari temple, St Peter’s Church, St James Church; amusement parks like Yazoo Park and Great Escape Water Park; paragliding facilities, and forts like Arnala and Vasai fort distinguish this region from the ever-busy Mumbai city.

 

Virar East has seen massive growth in real estate in the year 2007. The development of vital infrastructure like schools, colleges, hospitals, restaurants, and banks has also aided the locality’s growth.

 

Residential & Commercial Market

 

Residential Market Trends

 

What was once a middle-class residential locality with affordable property prices is now slowly changing into a costly location. The average price for residential apartment in Virar East is around Rs 4,575, whereas it’s Rs 4,510 for individual houses. The residential plots in Virar East cost Rs 3,158 per sq ft on average. Numerous builders are planning to launch their projects in Virar East.

 

The dominant property type here is apartments, with houses, villas, and builder plots next in line. Around 27 per cent of the projects in Virar East are now ongoing.

 

Commercial Market Trends

 

Because of the booming tourism market, commercial market is ever-growing in Virar East. The rent rate for commercial shops in the area ranges from Rs 20-300 per sq. ft.

 

Major Challenges

 

Virar East is a crowded area. The region suffers majorly from water scarcity problems, especially in the summer. There are also many potholes on the roads which have not been fixed properly, thereby leading to traffic congestion. One can also find blockage of gutter pipelines. In some places, several illegal buildings and plots have also been constructed.

 

Factors for Growth in the Future

 

With the quadrupling of the railway line between Virar and Borivali in the year 2007, the region is expected to grow at rapid pace.

 

An ambitious project by MMRDA, Virar-Alibaug Corridor Project is a major growth potential for the locality. This Rs 10,000-crore project aims to provide uninterrupted connectivity both through road and rail from Alibaug to Virar. It is set to cover both the eastern and western suburbs. According to the proposal, it will connect four important national highways, i.e., NH-8, NH-4, NH-17, and NH-3. This 140-km corridor can potentially reduce a lot of traffic congestion.

 

Another railway corridor project, called Churchgate-Virar Elevated Rail Corridor, has been approved. The budget for this project is estimated at around Rs 15,000 crores. The Indian Railways has even approached World Bank for financial assistance. This 60-km track will run both underground as well as over. Although many of the project details are yet to be finalised, this project is expected to usher enormous growth and development for the locality.