NAVI MUMBAI: To mitigate and avert flood-like situations in villages surrounding the Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA), the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) has undertaken the expansion and de-siltation of the Ulwe riverbed.
Accordingly, a portion of the river passing from the state Highway (SH)–54 to National Highway (NH) – 4B is to be re-sectioned to avert flooding in five villages, namely Paragoan, Dungi, Dapoli, Bhangarpada, and Khalche Ovale.
The execution of the project is estimated to cost around ₹12 crore, and it will also include constructing new concrete bunds along the riverside.
The affected villagers had approached CIDCO to find a solution for future flooding during monsoons. “The villages have expanded beyond the original goathan area, and the houses are now in low-lying areas. Flooding during heavy monsoons is a major concern,” said a senior official from CIDCO.
According to the officials, the Dungi village is located at a ground elevation of 2.50 meters to 3.50 meters above mean sea level (ABMSL). “The expansion of the riverbed is being done to address the issue of flooding and as per the recommendation given by the Central Water and Power Research Station (CWPRS),” said a senior official from CIDCO.
The recommendations are part of the extensive study done by the CWPRS, which facilitated the construction of the Ulwe Recourse Channel (URC) for diverting the Ulwe River. The multi-crore project was completed in June 2019. “The URC construction was done to ensure that there is no flooding within the airport site. The current project of sectioning a portion of the Ulwe River is to address flooding in the adjacent villages wherein the depth and the width of the river are to be increased,” Shantanu Goel, joint managing director, CIDCO, said.
{{/usCountry}}The recommendations are part of the extensive study done by the CWPRS, which facilitated the construction of the Ulwe Recourse Channel (URC) for diverting the Ulwe River. The multi-crore project was completed in June 2019. “The URC construction was done to ensure that there is no flooding within the airport site. The current project of sectioning a portion of the Ulwe River is to address flooding in the adjacent villages wherein the depth and the width of the river are to be increased,” Shantanu Goel, joint managing director, CIDCO, said.
{{/usCountry}}As per the preliminary plan, widening the riverbank and digging up to an almost 40-meter depth of the riverbed has been proposed. “The re-sectioning of the river will increase the water holding capacity of the river considerably, thereby averting the possibility of flooding in the low-lying areas. The construction of bunds is also done to manage flood situations,” added the official.
However, the villagers remain sceptical about the project and say that CIDCO is engaging in a stop-gap arrangement. “Modifying the river was the biggest mistake as now it is just 1 km away from sea, leading to reverse flow of seawater during high tides regularly. Earlier the river was almost 5 km away from the sea. No amount of expansion work will avert floods because the size of the riverbed is now reduced to a channel, which during rainfall will certainly overflow,” said villager Chetan Daur from Dapoli.
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