The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has asked for immediate permission from the Supreme Court to cut 95 trees in Film City, Goregaon East. The Court has already given an in-principle go-ahead, but a final decision is still pending.
This is needed to begin work on the tunnel boring machine launch site for the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road project. Sources also suggest that further delays could increase costs since the contract allows price increases if there are time overruns.
The next court hearing is on August 12. The bench includes Chief Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice K. Vinod Chandran. They have stated that no tree can be cut without the owner's approval. The Tree Authority has said that the road tunnel will save green cover on the surface.
The Supreme Court had earlier ordered that no trees should be cut without its approval. This was related to Aarey and the vehicle shed project of the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited. But the Ministry of Environment, Forests, and Climate Change has allowed the BMC to use 19.43 hectares of forest land for the GMLR tunnel project.
The GMLR project will connect the Western Express Highway at Goregaon with the Eastern Express Highway at Mulund. The total length is 12.2 km. This will reduce travel time from 75 minutes to 25 minutes. The project is split into four phases, and the full cost is around INR 14,000 crore.
The twin tunnels are expected to be ready by October 2028. The estimated cost for the tunnel phase is INR 6,551 crore. The twin tunnels will cover 6.2 km, of which 5.3 km will be dug using tunnel boring machines. Most parts of the first tunnel boring machine have arrived from Japan. These are kept near Film City Road. The tunnel will start in Film City and end at Amar Junction in Mulund.