The Bombay High Court, on Wednesday, August 5, permitted the axing of 357 mangrove trees for the Bhakti Park Metro station on the Wadala-Ghatkopar-Mulund-Thane-Kasarvadavali route.
The court also directed the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to pay for planting 4,444 saplings on the forest land at Gorai Village in suburban Mumbai. This comes amidst allegations by experts that the weather conditions in the city have worsened in recent times due to the destruction of mangroves and unplanned constructions.
Debi Goenka, an environmentalist, recently speaking to the media stated that the mangroves absorb excess water but they are being destroyed in Mumbai in the guise of infrastructure development which has lead to the city being inundated due to the continual rains.
According to a report in Indian Express, a division bench of Justices S J Kathawalla and R I Chagla passed the order on a plea filed by MMRDA seeking permission to initiate construction of work related to Metro line-4. The proposed construction, under Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ)-II area, include a Metro station at Bhakti Park in Wadala, 48 piers for Metro alignment covering 1,200 square metres, and a temporary approach road covering total 0.1236 hectares to be used during the construction phase.
Meanwhile, according to sources, more than 40 trees have fallen across the city due to the incessant rainfall in Mumbai. A video of a tree falling on Western Railway (WR) tracks and sparks flying around with loud noise near Wankhede stadium also went viral during this time.
At a time when changes in rainfall and other forms of precipitation are ensuing, the decision to further chop the trees can prove to be detrimental in the long run with regards to climate change.
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