Colaba residents renew legal challenge to jetty project near Gateway of India

The proposed terminal features a sprawling, tennis racquet-shaped jetty, complete with VIP lounges, restaurants, an amphitheatre, and a sewage treatment plant—facilities the residents claim are excessive and environmentally damaging

MUMBAI: The Clean Heritage Colaba Residents Association (CHCRA) has filed a rejoinder—a formal reply to a previous statement—before the Bombay High Court, challenging the Maharashtra Maritime Board’s (MMB) plan to build a passenger jetty and terminal near the Gateway of India.

Mumbai, India - April 27, 2025:Barricade installed for upcoming Jetty near Radio Club and Gateway of India, in Mumbai, India, on Sunday, April 27, 2025. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/ Hindustan Times) (Hindustan Times)

Represented by CHCRA president Subhash Motwani, the association argues that the proposed 15-acre project violates environmental regulations and undermines heritage conservation norms. The site falls within the ecologically sensitive Coastal Regulation Zone-I and IV (CRZ-I and CRZ-IV) and is located in the buffer zone of the Gateway of India, a Grade I heritage monument.

The proposed terminal features a sprawling, tennis racquet-shaped jetty, complete with VIP lounges, restaurants, an amphitheatre, and a sewage treatment plant—facilities the residents claim are excessive and environmentally damaging.

CHCRA points to a 2000 study by Howe India (P) Ltd., commissioned by the Mumbai Port Trust (MbPT), which had rejected the same location due to poor accessibility and environmental risks. The study instead recommended Ferry Wharf—a dock in Mazgaon historically used for passenger services—as a more suitable site. The recommendation was accepted by both the MbPT and the state government at the time. However, the MMB revived the Colaba site proposal in 2014 and again in 2022 without conducting fresh feasibility studies or referring to the earlier expert findings.

The residents have also raised serious concerns about the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) reports, calling them flawed and misleading. The reports, they say, misstate critical site details, ignore the impact on marine ecology, and fail to address the visual and cultural significance of the Gateway of India.

In its affidavit, CHCRA has criticised the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) for approving the project under the category of a “standalone jetty”—a classification that typically excludes terminals with commercial amenities. The association contends this is a deliberate mischaracterisation intended to sidestep stricter environmental clearance processes.

Further, CHCRA alleges that the approval process lacked public transparency, bypassing mandatory hearings and community notifications, thereby violating environmental due process.

In its rejoinder, the association argues that MMB has failed to justify the change in site or address concerns about traffic congestion, ecological harm, and the visual degradation of Mumbai’s historic waterfront.

The petition also invokes Articles 14 and 21 of the Constitution, arguing that the project infringes on citizens’ fundamental rights to a clean environment and heritage protection.

Although preliminary piling has begun—with two steel piles already driven into the seabed—major construction is yet to start. The petitioners maintain that the project is not “well underway” as claimed by MMB.

They further argue that the planned 64,000 sq ft development—with its cafés, lounges, parking spaces, and large reclaimed sea area—goes far beyond the scope of a standalone jetty and requires full-scale environmental clearance.

Concerns have also been raised about the lack of a new traffic impact assessment, especially given the persistent congestion on PJ Ramchandani Marg, the narrow road leading to the Gateway. The heritage NOC (No Objection Certificate), the petition says, fails to consider the visual intrusion on the iconic monument and its surroundings.

CHCRA also questions the need for enclosing large stretches of the sea and warns that piling vibrations may damage nearby heritage structures.

Advocate Prerak Choudhary, representing CHCRA. “We have filed our rejoinder in response to the Maharashtra Maritime Board’s affidavit. Since the matter is sub judice, we will present our full arguments before the court.”

The next hearing is scheduled for Monday.