Mumbai: Citizens join hands to oppose Coast Road project

Say project is anti-people and anti-environment

geetanjali

Geetanjali Minhas | May 20, 2016 | Mumbai


#Coast Road   #Environment   #Mumbai  

Some 15 citizen organisations and resident associations have come together on a common platform called Apna Mumbai Abhiyan to protest against big infrastructure projects in the city approved without public consultations.

On Thursday, Taking on the 33-km-long Coast Road, the first in its weekly series, environmentalist, Darryl D’ Monte said “Even before obtaining the final clearance from ministry of environment and forests in April 2016, the BMC has issued four ‘expression of interests’ documents for four stretches of the coast road indicating that it is proceeding on identifying international consultants and their Indian partners.”

The group strongly objected the lack of consultation with citizens on the project. The civic body has instead put up a highly technical detailed project report on its website which is not understood by most people, they said. They claimed that repeated attempts by the concerned citizens to engage with the BMC officials on the alignment and impact of the coast road failed to receive favourable response.

The group  slammed BMC for asking MoEF  to waive conditions imposed by  MCZMA (Maharashtra  coastal zone management authority) which includes setting aside 2 percent of the total project cost  which is Rs 240 crores (out of the total Rs 12000 crores) towards mitigation measures ( like restoration and conservation of mangroves  and mudflats, planting five times the number of mangroves cut or destroyed  during construction process and obtaining  high court’s  permission  before clearing mangroves, submitting  a study of impact of clearing of  mangroves  on the flooding  of  low lying areas along the coast, ensuring that no fishing activity was hampered during construction and operation  of coast road  and creating a green belt  around the road).

Hussain Indorewala, a faculty at the Kamla Raheja Vidyanidhi Institute of Architecture and Environmental Studies, said that on one hand the government demolishes houses built on forest land citing environment laws and on the other it itself is doing a project against it.

The Independent People’s Tribunal held a public hearing in October 2015. The tribunal which includes members like Justice (Retd) Hosbet Suresh, former municipal commissioners - DM Sukhtankar and Jamsheed Kanga, BC Khatua(IAS Retired)  and director of Mumbai Transformation Support Unit, Dr Rakesh Kumar. Chief scientist, National Environmental Engineering Research Institute in its report published in March 2016 has unanimously opposed coast road terming it anti-people, anti-environment and demanding the project to be scrapped.    
 

Comments

 

Other News

ONOE: Anti-federalism or pro-reform?

The government`s move to implement ‘One Nation, One Election’ (ONOE) has ignited widespread debate. On one hand, it offers tangible benefits, such as removing the possibility of a governance paralysis and reducing election costs. On the other hand, the opposition and sections of civil society s

PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana completes first year

On February 13, 2025, the PM Surya Ghar: Muft Bijli Yojana (PMSGMBY) will mark its first anniversary, celebrating a year of empowering households with affordable solar energy and accelerating India’s transition to a sustainable future. Launched by prime minister Narendra Modi on Febru

How to leverage AI to solve urgent global issues

The world seems to be hurling towards World War III in all the possible scenarios: hot war, cold war, and proxy war. The battleground seems to have expanded beyond physical to digital or virtual/mixed reality with technology like drones. Moreover, the line between civilian and military targets seems to hav

Budget: Progress towards SDGs and areas for improvement

The Union Budget 2025-26 outlines India`s vision for economic and social growth while also reflecting the country`s commitment to sustainable development. As India moves closer to the 2030 deadline for the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), this budget presents a balanced approach

Repo rate cut by 25 basis points to 6.25%

The Reserve Bank of India has, for the first time in five years, reduced the policy repo rate under the liquidity adjustment facility (LAF) by 25 basis points to 6.25% with immediate effect. Consequently, the standing deposit facility (SDF) rate will stand adjusted to 6.00% and the marginal

Amitav Ghosh’s new work: Connections between the word and the world

Wild Fictions: Essays By Amitav Ghosh HarperCollins, 496 pages, Rs 799.00 Amitav Ghosh, one of a handful of Ind

Visionary Talk: Amitabh Gupta, Pune Police Commissioner with Kailashnath Adhikari, MD, Governance Now



Archives

Current Issue

Opinion

Facebook Twitter Google Plus Linkedin Subscribe Newsletter

Twitter