Reaching Taraporewala
By Train : Nearest station being Charni Road
on Western Railway Route, Second station from Churchgate (South
Mumbai). If you are coming from outside city or are a tourist getting
down at CST station, Direct taxi and buses are easy option to reach in
next 15 to 20 minutes. If your train drops you at Dadar station, get any
slow local train towards Churchgate and get down at 7th station from
Dadar which is Charni Road. If you are a tourist staying at far suburb
hotels near airport or locations around you need to follow the same
train route and catch any local train towards churchgate. Once at
station, you can see sea beach side connecting chowpatty and its just
walkable from here.
By Road : Get inside Mumbai city from Eastern / Western
Express Highway and follow the sign boards towards south Mumbai. From
east of Marine lines, Cross a small east west flyover bridge and you are
to this attraction. Alternatively you can get inside Dadar west and
follow Worli AB Road, Peddar Road or Bhulabhai Desai Road which takes
you towards Chowpatty Beach near Aquarium.
Address Contacts and Timings
Address : Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose Road, Near Charni
Road Railway Station, Post Police Gymkhana Club House, Marine Lines,
Mumbai, Maharashtra – 400002, India
Contact : +91-22-22821239
Timings 10:30 am – 8:00 pm Weekdays, 10:00 am to 8:00 pm on Sundays, Monday Closed.
Preparing
ahead for the expected rush yesterday, authorities had deployed
additional staff and police personnel at the aquarium, especially the
ticket counter, to manage the rush. However, the visitors standing in
the long queue were disappointed when they read that extra charges would
be applicable for any individual who wants to click photos, even from a
mobile phone.
Great expectations
What’s more, once inside the
aquarium, many expressed their dissatisfaction with the renovation. It
seems that photos of a multi-level aquarium had been doing the rounds on
WhatsApp groups, claiming to be of the newly renovated Taraporevala
aquarium. Most visitors yesterday said that the aquarium was not what
they had expected at all.
Umar Matto (24) had come from Thane with his family of three to visit
the aquarium. “I saw photos of the multi-level aquarium on WhatsApp and
we decided to come and see it, but I am not satisfied with how the
aquarium has been developed. Moreover, I was shocked to see some fishes
in the tank already dead, just a day after the opening. Authorities are
charging R500 for clicking photos with a cell phone, which is unfair.
I think mobile photography should be free.” Another visitor said, “We
were expecting the renovated aquarium to match international standards,
but the reality is quite disappointing. I get to see a better diversity
of fishes during local fish exhibitions. On top of that, they want to
charge R500 for taking photos. If the charges are not cancelled, no one
will turn up.”
A representative of a South Mumbai school was also visiting the
aquarium to see if they could organise a picnic for students, but even
she expressed her dissatisfaction with the aquarium. Visitors were seen
writing negative remarks on the visitor’s diary that was kept on the
premises, and even contacting authorities of the aquarium to express
their disappointment.
Worli-resident Sanjay Parab, who had come with his wife and daughter,
said, “I had come here thinking that it is a multi-level aquarium, but
when I reached I realised that the images being circulated on WhatsApp
are fake. Charging money for mobile photography inside the aquarium is
not a good idea.”
Expert speak
Anand Pendharkar, environmentalist
from sprouts NGO, said, “It is ridiculous to charge Rs 500 for using
mobile camera. This is almost as much as someone would pay to visit an
amusement park that offers many recreational activities, unlike an
aquarium. It is a government-run aquarium and not a place to charge such
a hefty amount.”
There is a bit of personal history over Taraporevala Aquarium:
1) I have visited Mumbai’s sole aquarium over three decades ago, and it was nothing to remember.
2) Three recent visits, only to learn that it hadn’t opened as yet.
3) We’ve been to Singapore’s Ocenarium. And, THAT is a must-visit.
As I exit our cab outside Charni Road I recall these memories, and
our visit to the only other attempt at an aquarium in this sea-faced
city: the Dolphin Aquarium.
Tareporevala Aquarium is packed. Well, I don’t know what I expected but it is not bad.
After all the fuss and the time taken to open it, it could have been better, but it is not bad.
While
the place is a must-visit for Mumbai’s kids, the crowds can be a
put-off for visitors as it obstructs clear views of the marine life on
display. Pics/Bipin Kokate
The aquarium consists of one long room lined with glass cases that
carry fish. The glass cases are bigger, wider and the fish in each case
is identified with information given in two languages. We jostled
through the crowd trying to look at the fish. The centre of the room
also has cases with fish in it. The much-touted Marine Touch Pool is a
huge disappointment. It is a mid-size tank that is open on the top
where, if you look closely, you will find starfish and cucumber fish and
other quiet marine life that can be touched. The kids did not feel like
touching them.
Ammol, my son, seems to have a penchant for sharks. Much to his,
disappointment, we didn’t get to see any. There is a mix of marine and
freshwater fishes, including coral fishes collected from Lakshadweep as
well as marine landscape. The Moray Eels, Singapore Turtles and
Stingrays excite many. There is a museum of sorts containing specimens
of preserved fishes and some varieties of seashells. We were in a hurry,
but we could browse through the entire aquarium within 10 minutes.
Taraporewala Aquarium was overwhelming; unfortunately, for the wrong
reasons. Perhaps a combination of factors — the closure of schools for
smaller kids, the opening of a novelty of sorts for children, the lack
of new and affordable places to take kids to for entertainment — made
this place crowded and uncomfortably noisy.
The Aquarium is a must-visit and hopefully, there will be more added
to the space in terms of activities and information and collection. For
now, it seems like a place I would like to re-visit if and when the
crowds dwindle.
The country's oldest and once one of the city's main attractions, the Taraporevala Aquarium, is set to reopen.
The renovated aquarium, with a marine tunnel, will be inaugurated on Friday by chief minister Devendra Fadnavis.
Its key attraction will be a 12-foot long and 360 degree acrylic glass tunnel, from where visitors can enter.
Another main attraction will be special pools, where children can touch
fish which are harmless. The fish will be in large glass tanks,which
will be lit with LED lights.
The renovation, on for two years,
should have ended by August 2014 but got delayed due to technical
reasons. The cost also escalated from Rs 19 crore to Rs 22 crore.
The new aquarium will have about 2,000 fish of over 400 species, most of them imported from Hong Kong and Bangkok.
Most of the marine fish are exotic, like the butterfly, damsel,
helicopter, Arowana and Gruppen. Others varieties include the tang,
yellow-striped tang, blue-spotted stingray, star, clown, hark, trigger,
Grouper and Moorish idol.
"The aquarium will have awareness
programmes. There will be slide shows or educational films of 10-15
minutes each for children," said fisheries commissioner Madhukar
Gaikwad.
Mumbaikars will, however, have to pay Rs 15-20 more as
entry fees. The government has after 12 years hiked the visitors' fees
for adults (above 12 years) to Rs 60 and for children (3-12 years) it
will be Rs 30. Other than the Rs 500 charge for using your mobile, the
use of digital or video cameras will be charged an extra Rs 1,000. For
professional cameras, the fee is higher.
PWD engineers said the
new aquarium has been given a third-generation look and the new fee
structure was due to the introduction of new varieties of fish and high
maintenance cost. The entire renovation has cost the government around
Rs 22 crore.
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