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The Hornby Vellard was a project to build a
causeway A causeway is a track, road or railway on the upper point of an embankment across "a low, or wet place, or piece of water". It can be constructed of earth, masonry, wood, or concrete. One of the earliest known wooden causeways is the Sweet Tr ...
uniting all seven islands of Bombay into a single island with a deep natural harbour. The project was started by the governor William Hornby in 1782 and all islands were linked by 1838. The word ''vellard'' appears to be a local corruption of the Portuguese word ''vallado'' meaning fence or embankment. The purpose of this causeway was to block the Worli creek and prevent the low-lying areas of Bombay from being flooded at high tide. The cost was estimated at about ₹£100,000. It was completed in 1784 and was one of the first major
civil engineering Civil engineering is a professional engineering discipline that deals with the design, construction, and maintenance of the physical and naturally built environment, including public works such as roads, bridges, canals, dams, airports, sewa ...
projects that transformed the original seven islands of Bombay into one island. According to some accounts, Hornby ordered the work to be started after the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Sou ...
turned down his proposal; and continued as Governor till the end of his term in 1785, ignoring the suspension notice sent to him.


Citations and references

Citations References * * {{coord missing, Maharashtra History of Mumbai