Residents Protest Tree Felling for Mumbai Coastal Road Phase 2 in Kandivali West | File Photo
Mumbai: After local opposition to felling 337 trees in Charkop Sector 8, Kandivali West for the Versova-Dahisar Link Road (VDLR) project, MLA Sanjay Upadhyay and local residents met with BMC officials on Sunday. It was proposed that 190 trees near residential buildings will be spared, while trees along the divider and some of the mangrove patch will be cleared. A team, include MLA, civic engineers and local residents, will conduct a physical survey this week to assess the impacted trees.
The meeting, chaired by Upadhyay, was attended by Vaibhav Gandhi, Executive Engineer from BMC’s Bridge Department, along with members of the Charkop Sector 8 Vikas Samiti. Residents strongly opposed BMC’s proposal to shift the Mangrove Protection Boundary wall 30 ft. inward along the 90ft road, expressing concerns that this would result in the destruction of 190 trees and additional mangroves. They pointed out that court orders explicitly prohibit the destruction of mangroves without proper approval from relevant authorities.
Sector 08 consists of 23 towers, each housing 90-100 flats, and 29 clusters with 36-50 rooms each. “Due to a lack of sufficient parking space within the buildings and clusters, vehicles are often parked on both sides of the road. The proposed 30-foot reduction in road width and the construction of the wall will exacerbate the already dire parking situation, leading to severe traffic congestion and chaos,” said Mili Shetty, an environmentalist who attended the meeting.
Meanwhile, the MLA has instructed civic officials to submit a revised plan, outlining the exact number of trees that can be preserved and those that will be removed for the project. Upadhyay said, “We will soon conduct an on-site inspection and survey regarding this matter. Since we are skeptical about the BMC’s tree replanting process, we have urged the corporation to reconsider their approach. We are committed to making every possible effort to ensure that no harm is done to nature in this process.”
Last week, residents of Charkop, sector 8, in Kandivali West were surprised to find public notices posted on several trees in their area. The notices read that the trees are set to be felled for expanding the Coastal Road from Versova to Dahisar. While the civic authorities have assured to transplant 228 trees, the residents are worried that relocated trees won’t survive once uprooted.
