166 trees to be cut for two new lines on WR

The notice referred to the stretch between Bhayandar station and Panju Island, under Western Railway’s Mumbai Urban Transport Project phase IIIA

MUMBAI: A total of 166 trees within the Mira Bhayandar Municipal Corporation (MBMC) jurisdiction are in the way of the fifth and sixth railway lines planned between Borivali and Virar. According to a public notice by MBMC, 136 of them will be felled, and 30 will be transplanted in a nearby area.

166 trees to be cut for two new lines on WR

In the MBMC notice issued on Friday, the civic body stated that it intends to approve the Western Railway’s (WR) project, and invited residents to register any objections within seven days. The notice referred to the stretch between Bhayandar station and Panju Island, under Western Railway’s Mumbai Urban Transport Project phase IIIA. Among the trees that will come under the axe are varieties such as coconut, peepal, almond, nilgiri, ashoka, ladyfinger, gulmohar, dates, mango, etc. A few of them marked for transplantation are over 40 years old.

In September last year, the Bombay High Court permitted the removal of 2,612 mangroves for the public transportation project. The court had also directed the WR to file an undertaking stating that it will complete the plantation and maintenance of 7,823 compensatory trees near the mangroves.

Currently, the axing of 2,612 mangroves has begun. As this tract of land between Dahisar and Mira Road is cleared, the land-filling exercise is also being undertaken simultaneously.

The WR is undertaking the construction of two lines between Borivali and Virar by spending an estimated ₹2,184 crore. The Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) had approved the project but placed 20 conditions WR must comply with to minimise environmental impact. The 26-km lines are expected to increase the frequency of trains beyond the western suburbs.

The Mumbai Rail Vikas Corporation is executing the project, and the WR aims to complete it by December 2027.