Centre clears diversion of 18 acres of SGNP forest for development works

Mumbai: The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has given its nod for diversion of around 18 acres of forest land in Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), in Thane and Palghar districts, for development works

Mumbai: The National Board for Wildlife (NBWL) has given its nod for diversion of around 18 acres of forest land in Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), in Thane and Palghar districts, for development works. These include the construction of a service road connecting Kolshet to Bhayandarpada, being constructed by the Thane Municipal Corporation (TMC) as part of the road widening of Ghodbunder Road, which will lead to the diversion of 1.5 acres of forest land. A larger chunk of around 16.7 acres will be diverted for the shifting of two major power lines of MSETCL, to make way for the upcoming Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train.

The region where these two projects are coming up is set to undergo a rapid transformation in the near future, with the Virar-Alibaug Multi-Modal Corridor and the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor also set to come up in the area, sparking concerns around the safety of wildlife. (HT PHOTO)

The decision was taken by NBWL in its last meeting on January 27, the minutes of which were accessed by Hindustan Times this week. The region where these two projects are coming up is set to undergo a rapid transformation in the near future, with the Virar-Alibaug Multi-Modal Corridor and the Western Dedicated Freight Corridor also set to come up in the area, sparking concerns around the safety of wildlife. Crucially, these developments will lead to the fragmentation of an important wildlife passageway between SGNP and Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary (TWLS), near Nangla forest round in the Yeoor Range of SGNP, where researchers in 2021 documented the movement of a leopard across the Ghodbunder Road.

The Board has also directed the TMC to convert all culverts in the service road’s alignment into wider box culverts to ensure safe passage for wildlife traveling between SGNP and Tungareshwar Wildlife Sanctuary, which lies on the other side of Ghodbunder Road. TMC is also instructed to construct a cement concrete wall with barbed wire lining along the side of Ghodbunder Road to prevent the entry of wildlife animals into the path of oncoming traffic. The exact locations of these constructions will be identified by the chief conservator of forests, SGNP.

As for the diversion of 16.7 hectares of forest land to make way for the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train, the NBWL observed that the alignment of the railway line is infringing on two existing transmission routes (220 kV Padghe-Vasai line, and a 100 kV Padghe-Vasai line) of the Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Limited, which need to be shifted.

“A combined mitigation plan has been approved by PCCF (Wildlife) for Mumbai-Ahmedabad high speed railway project, dedicated freight corridor and multimodal corridor passing through proposed area. Hence, all the mitigation measures proposed in the mitigation plan shall be implemented by the project proponent,” the NBWL instructed. Vijay Aware, executive engineer, MSETCL, said, “We are awaiting a physical copy of the NBWL’s clearance, after which the work to shift the transmission lines will start, possibly within a month.”

TMC officials directed HT’s inquiries to municipal commissioner Abhijit Bangar, who did not respond to requests for comment on Tuesday.