Good News! Maharashtra govt puts on hold proposed 2,500% hike in morning walk fees at Sanjay Gandhi park

In a welcoming move for Mumbaikars, the Maharashtra forest department has put on hold a proposal to steeply increase annual ticket charges for visitors to Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) following criticism over the scale of the hike.

The proposed revision envisaged increasing annual pass rates for morning walkers from ₹348 to ₹10,000, marking an increase of more than 2,500%. The revised rates were scheduled to come into effect from May 1.

Spread across 104 sq km in the suburbs of Mumbai, SGNP is a protected forest area frequented by morning walkers and cycling enthusiasts. Officials said around 2,500 people visit the park daily for morning walks.

Rahul Gavai, Conservator and Director of the park, issued a pamphlet announcing this huge fee hike. While justifying the price hike in this letter, he said that funds are needed for security, cleanliness and conservation of forest resources in the park.

Meanwhile, BJP MLA from Borivali, Sanjay Upadhyay, said on Saturday that he will not allow the hike to come into place. “Citizens come to SGNP every morning and evening for healthy walk. I am opposing the way how the hike in the fees have been proposed as this is purely unfair. We will not allow this to happen,” Upadhyay said in a post on X.

According to the proposal, the monthly fee for morning walkers was to be increased to ₹1,000, while those opting for an annual payment would have had to pay ₹10,000 after a discount. For senior citizens, the proposed annual fee was ₹5,000, with a monthly charge of ₹500.

Under the revised charges applicable from May 1, the fee for visiting the lion and tiger safari has been increased from ₹250 to ₹750 (₹125 to ₹375 for children). A ride on the mini train will now cost ₹300, compared to ₹100 earlier. Similarly, bus tickets from the park entrance to the Kanheri Caves have been hiked from ₹100 to ₹300.

In addition to this, the park had earlier received approval to restructure ticket rates for various visitor services, along with plans to introduce an integrated digital ticketing mechanism.

These changes were intended to streamline visitor management and improve operational efficiency at one of Mumbai’s most visited green spaces. However, this has also been put on hold without a specific timeline for resolution.