₹35-cr Miyawaki project gets BMC standing committee nod

The standing committee of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) approved a proposal to plant 377,416 trees under the Miyawaki project at a cost of ₹35 crore.

The standing committee of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) approved a proposal to plant 377,416 trees under the Miyawaki project at a cost of ₹35 crore.

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Miyawaki is a technique pioneered by Japanese botanist Akira Miyawaki to build dense native forests in urban areas.

Despite the project getting the committee’s nod, chairman Yashwant Jadhav (Shiv Sena) raised concerns about the cost of the project and said that paying ₹50,000 for each tree was too expensive. He also said he was not happy with the method of floating tenders.

“There is no doubt that this project is good. However, our city is already struggling for ‘urban open space’ and such a project will create more burden on our city,” said Jadhav. He also criticised the administration on the cost of the project, stating that a feasibility check was required.

Jadhav also raised concerns about appointing a contractor before appointing a consultant for the Miyawaki project.

Opposition leader (Congress) in BMC, Ravi Raja also criticised the project saying BMC is running behind this ambitious project of the civic commissioner without checking its credibility. “Why is the administration using 318 playgrounds in the city? We are already facing lack of space for playing,” he said.

Refuting all these allegations, the superintendent of gardens for BMC, Jitendra Pardeshi, gave a presentation on the Miyawaki project.

Pardeshi explained that each tree will cost ₹5,000, not ₹50,000. According to the garden department, around 31 acres will be utilised for this dense forest.