The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has proposed to cut three trees opposite St. Andrew's Church in Bandra West in order to widen the road towards the station. The civic authority has invited public suggestions and objections by January 23. Aarey activist Zoru Bathena stated that Bandra accommodates many hawkers and there is double parking in many lanes. BMC should focus on these problems to widen the road and not cut trees.
BMC's Tree Department official stated that the cutting of trees has only been proposed and the final decision will be taken only after they receive people's suggestions. Bathena further stated that since this year, 777 trees have been proposed to be cut by BMC across the city for infrastructure and development projects. It majorly includes widening of roads and construction of bridges. In 2019, BMC proposed to cut 14,518 trees and in 2018 around 8,000. Most of the proposals were for cutting trees in Aarey colony for Metro 3 (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz) car shed.
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Notably, a four-member committee was set up on December 11 i.e. a day after Shiv Sena-NCP-Congress government took charge to find an alternative site for Metro 3 (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz) car shed. The committee submitted a report stating that they can consider Jogeshwari as an alternative along with Kanjurmarg site.
However, the Jogeshwari site wasn't a part of Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited’s (MMRCL) list of alternate sites. It is a 102-acre plot and houses a camp of the State Reserve Police Force and has residential blocks and training facility for the personnel. The open ground is used for training. Moreover, it is at a mere distance of 6 km from SEEPZ, which will be the last station for the Metro 3 corridor. Taking note of the above factors, the committee is considering to use the space for Metro 3 car shed.
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