₹20 cr sanctioned by BMC for SGNP wildlife plan for GMLR

The proposal, placed before the BMC’s standing committee on Wednesday, received approval as the civic body sought permission to provide the funds in accordance with conditions laid down during the project’s environmental clearance

MUMBAI: An amount of ₹20 crore will be transferred to the chief conservator of forests and director of Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) for implementing a Man-Wildlife Conflict Prevention Plan and a Wildlife Conservation Plan linked to the Goregaon-Mulund Link Road (GMLR) tunnel project.

The ₹20 crore amount is in line with the conditions attached to the clearance granted by the National Board for Wildlife in 2019, which stipulated that a portion of the project cost be allocated to the forest department

The proposal, placed before the BMC’s standing committee on Wednesday, received approval as the civic body sought permission to provide the funds in accordance with conditions laid down during the project’s environmental clearance. Abhijit Bangar, additional municipal commissioner (projects) said that since the project alignment passed beneath SGNP, it was essential for the BMC to obtain a no-objection certificate (NOC) from the forest department.

Bangar explained that the ₹20 crore was being given in line with the conditions attached to the clearance granted by the National Board for Wildlife in 2019, which stipulated that a portion of the project cost be allocated to the forest department. Bangar said that the funds would support conservation and plantation activities within the protected area, which could improve the survival rate of trees compared to compensatory plantation carried out through contractors. The plan has been approved by the State Chief Wildlife Warden.

According to the BMC, the human-wildlife conflict mitigation and conservation plan includes measures such as fencing, installation of signage and information boards, watch towers, veterinary ambulance teams, transit treatment centres, control rooms, creation of artificial ponds, involvement of NGOs for wildlife conservation, and air pollution and dust mitigation measures.

A civic official said that permission to begin work on the project would be granted by the state government only after the road design was modified in line with the animal passage plan prepared outside the protected area in consultation with the State Chief Wildlife Warden, based on guidelines issued by the Wildlife Institute of India.

Addressing concerns about the impact of the project on wildlife, a civic official said that the current shaft location was more than 600 metres away from the forest boundary and not in the immediate vicinity of the park. He added that when the tunnelling began, the alignment would remain more than 600 metres from one side before entering the national park underground. The tunnel will pass beneath the park and emerge outside its boundary, ensuring there is no direct intervention within the protected forest area.

The civic body has undertaken the GMLR project to improve east-west connectivity across Mumbai. The project includes the construction of a 5.30-km twin tunnel passing beneath SGNP along with a 1.32-km box tunnel and access roads in the Dadasaheb Phalke Chitranagari (Film City) area. Work on the project began in November 2023 and is expected to be completed by October 2028.