MMRDA to extend length of Sewri jetty for MTHL work

The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) has allowed the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to augment existing infrastructure at Sewri jetty, to aid in the ongoing construction of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link from Sewri to Nhava-Sheva in Navi Mumbai

The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) has allowed the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to augment existing infrastructure at Sewri jetty, to aid in the ongoing construction of the Mumbai Trans Harbour Link from Sewri to Nhava-Sheva in Navi Mumbai. The matter is now awaiting approval of the State Environment Impact Assessment Authority (SEIAA) before the proposed expansion works can start.

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As per a proposal submitted by the MMRDA to the regulatory authority, the existing ‘kerosene wharf’ at Sewri is proposed to be widened to help transport the orthotropic steel decks (OSD) that will make up the MTHL bridge sections. The existing jetty will be extended by 230 metres at its mouth, and a temporary jetty will also be established on piles toward its left, to create space for a self-propelled modular transporter - a large, industrial vehicle that is used to transport objects too heavy for trucks.

The MCZMA had earlier considered the proposal in February this year but decided at the time to seek a report on the matter from the forest department’s mangrove cell. In a subsequent report (dated March 25), the mangrove cell clarified that the area is not a reserved forest. As such, the MMRDA does not require clearance under the Forest Conservation Act (1980). However, the mangrove cell noted that “the proposed site falls within 50ms of notified mangrove forest” and that the “presence of true mangrove trees of avicennia officinalis is observed within the alignment.”

“The project proponent (MMRDA)... assured that mangroves will not be affected due to proposed construction activities,” the MCMZA observed during its latest meeting on June 10, the minutes of which have been reviewed by Hindustan Times. The MCZMA has recommended the expansion works for CRZ clearance with the imposed condition that the MMRDA seek out the Bombay high court’s permission before proceeding, with the area.

As per earlier directives of the HC, no construction work can take place on or within 50 metres of mangroves forests without its explicit permission. An engineer with the MMRDA who is involved with the project, but declined to be quoted, clarified that the authority will aim to file a writ petition before the HC before the next meeting of the SEIAA.

The Sewri jetty is owned by the Mumbai Port Trust and is part of a larger 27-hectare land parcel that was handed over to the MMRDA in 2016. About 12 hectares of land will be taken over by the sea link, while about 15 hectares around Sewri jetty is already being utilised as a casting yard, for the manufacture of concrete structures like bridge sections, beams and girders that will be used to assemble the MTHL bridge.