Don’t go down this road: Plan to build homes, institute on city’s mangroves
Civic body plans a road through the Versova mangroves; may construct houses in the Mahulchembur green belt
MUMBAI:NOT just encroachments, mangroves, which act as buffer zones for the city, are also at risk from the civic body.
Mangroves fall under the ‘natural area’ category, where no construction is allowed. But in the development plan 2034, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has marked a road in the mangroves abutting the Rajiv Gandhi Technical Institute in Versova, demarcated mangroves adjacent to the refineries in the Mahul-chembur belt as special development zone (SDZ) (spaces allocated for affordable housing) and allocated a 323acre plot in Goregaon for National Law University. If the plan goes unopposed, the city could lose a large chunk of natural areas to rampant construction in Mahul, Juhu-versova and Goregaon.
Mangroves are important for a city like Mumbai as they protect the shoreline from erosion and floods. They also help maintain water quality and support a wide variety of animals and birds. The presence of mangroves can be seen in Google Earth visuals, through which a road and plots pass. “Untouched land is being opened up for rampant construction. No construction is allowed on mangroves and they must be protected,” said Pankaj Joshi,
director, Urban Design Research Institute (UDRI), which has sent their objections.
Although the current environmental norms don’t permit construction on mangroves, activists and residents fear demarcation in the DP could open them up for development at a later stage, if the rules are relaxed.
Environmentalists have also expressed concerns over the provision in the DP, which has vested the right to change a natural area to an NDZ/SDZ to the municipal commissioner. A change can be made if the natural area does not fulfill the criteria set for it and with permission from the state government. Civic chief Ajoy Mehta had earlier promised the provision will be used only in case of errors where plots have been incorrectly marked as natural areas. The deputy director of town planning will hear these suggestions/objections. According to the corrigendum issued in June, DP 2034 will come into force from September 1.