A publicly accessible digital mapping tool has been developed to shed light on the environmental impact of the proposed Versova–Dahisar Coastal Road, particularly the large-scale loss of mangrove cover anticipated along Mumbai’s western coastline. The initiative has been made available to citizens through an open platform with the stated objective of improving transparency around infrastructure planning and environmental consequences.
It has been estimated by municipal authorities that the coastal road project will require the removal of at least 45,000 mangroves. These mangroves are widely recognised as critical ecological assets, functioning as natural flood buffers, shoreline stabilisers, and biodiversity habitats. Despite their significance, concerns have been raised that the scale and spatial extent of their removal have not been clearly communicated through official planning documents.
The mapping tool has been hosted on CityResource.in, a website that curates archival maps, spatial data, and analytical resources for public use. Through this platform, the alignment of the coastal road has been visually overlaid onto satellite imagery, clearly demarcating its passage through residential neighbourhoods, commercial zones, creeks, and green patches. Users have been enabled to select individual road stretches, measure affected land areas, and calculate the number of mangroves likely to be cut.
It has been stated by the developer that the initiative emerged from frustration with planning materials that were released without adequate spatial references, making them difficult for citizens to interpret. By converting official maps into interactive and exportable data, environmental impacts have been made more tangible and locally relevant. The Versova–Dahisar Coastal Road has been proposed as part of a high-speed vehicular corridor aimed at easing congestion on existing arterial routes. However, it has been noted that the project involves extensive land reclamation and shoreline modification in ecologically sensitive coastal zones. Environmental groups have argued that such impacts are often understated in official narratives.
Concerns have also been voiced by conservation advocates, who have suggested that the mapping tool reveals not only environmental damage but also potential commercial interests linked to reclaimed coastal land. It has been argued that the visualisation of data makes the consequences of development more difficult to ignore. Local residents have drawn parallels with earlier mapping efforts that highlighted how riverbank concretisation reduced water-carrying capacity and increased flood risk in suburban areas. Similar apprehensions have now been expressed regarding mangrove clearance along creek belts, particularly in low-lying neighbourhoods vulnerable to flooding.