Mumbai: The Navi Mumbai coastal road connecting Sector 16, Kharghar and Sector 11 of Central Business District (CBD), Belapur, has been cleared for construction by the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA).
The MZMA also cleared the construction of the remaining link between Sector 15 of CBD to Water Transport Terminal, Nerul. Both these projects are to be undertaken by the City and Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO).
The Mumbai Transharbour Link, along with Sewri Nhava Connector, will be the main corridor connecting Navi Mumbai and Mumbai. Construction of the Kharghar coastal road will enable seamless and shortest connectivity from ICP business centre to Navi Mumbai International Airport (NMIA) and also South/central Mumbai. It is also expected to enable the growth of Navi Mumbai as an alternative business centre to south Mumbai.
The CIDCO has said that the coastal road is 9.679 km-long out of which 2.986 km is an existing road. The proposed road is a mix of both stilt on road and at ground level through reclamation.
The link to water transport terminal is expected improve the connection to the rest of Navi Mumbai. However, there are 1,182 mangroves in the path of the construction. CIDCO has identified land for compensatory mangrove plantation at village Nhave in Uran, Raigad, spread over 126 hectares.
Tracing the route
The MCZMA meeting was held on December 7 and the minutes were released this week. CIDCO has prepared a Navi Mumbai Development Plan covering 95 villages into 14 well-planned and self-sustained nodes and the coastal road is expected to enhance the traffic connectivity.
The coastal road is also aimed at keeping local intra-city traffic away from Sion-Panvel Expressway and decongesting traffic on the expressway.
The proposed alignment starts from Jalmarg in Kharghar crosses Sion-Panvel Expressway with interchange and continue between Sector 10, Kharghar and Sector 11, Belapur, passing through existing 30-metre-wide roads in CBD Belapur. It further crosses Amra Marg (National Highway 348 A) with vehicular underpass and continues at grade road along creek, connects to elevated road at Water Transport Terminal, Nerul and joins Palm Beach Marg near Delhi Public School (DPS).
This will impact 62,349 sq meters of CRZ 1 A land with mangroves and 2,01,857 sq meters of land in CRZ 1 A, it was stated.
Environmental impact
The MCZMA noted that as per the environmental impact assessment (EIA) report, mangroves near the site mainly consists Avicennia Marina (grey or white mangrove) on either bank of the creek. The EIA report states that the site is surrounded by fishing villages. The MCZMA also discussed the impact of the project on local fisherfolk. However, the consultant presented that there is no commercial fishing done in that area.
Dr Mahesh Shindikar, expert member of MCZMA, asked about the impact of the project on mangroves. Dr Rahul Khot, another member, said that the area has biodiversity and presence of avifauna (the birds of a particular region, habitat, or geological period), the minutes of MCZMA said.
The consultant for CIDCO said in the meeting that the vegetation in the study area is a mix of deciduous (trees that shed leaves in autumn) and open scrub (vegetation found in dry region) type. The Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary is present at a distance of eight kilometers from the proposed coastal road.
Keep ecology in mind
The avifauna, observed during the survey, were colonies of waders which includes Flamingo, Brown headed Gull in the Creek during low tide. Total 72 species of birds (48 migrants and 24 residents) were recorded from the wetlands.
While recommending the project, the CIDCO was told to ensure that activities are carried out exercising extra caution to have minimum impact on the surrounding mangroves and coastal ecology. They were told to ensure that effort should be to lessen the footprint of the coastal road on the mangrove area.
Taloja river bridge
The MCZMA has also approved construction of a bridge across Taloja river which will provide connectivity between Kharghar and Pendhar of Navi Mumbai.
The proposed connectivity will be between Sion-Panvel Expressway through the Kharghar node and to Panchanand Pendhar area leading to Taloja Industrial Belt Dombivali, Ambernath, and Badlapur areas.
This connectivity will help reduce the congestion of traffic at Kalamboli junction and Shilphata road leading to Dombivali and Kalyan Industrial and Housing area.
The connectivity will make commuting easy for those trying to reach developing area of Diva-Panvel and Taloja Industrial area by offering shortest distance from and through Kharghar node. This will also support the nearby industrial belt with manpower and its connectivity for development.
As per the minutes, 5,646 sq metres of CRZ 1 A land and 20,130 sq metres of CRZ 1 B land will be affected by this project.
Security Chowki
The MCZMA has also cleared construction of a security chowki for people heading to Gateway of India. The security system was installed after the 26/11 attacks and they functioned from containers. The new chowki is being built by the BMC. A height restriction of 5.10 meters has been imposed so as not to block the view of the Gateway. The BMC has also been asked to get a NOC from competent archaeological authority.
The chowki is at the junction of Adam Street and Rajkavi Bhushan Marg. The existing structures there will be demolished. The chowki will be spread over 409 sq meters.
Source: https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMidGh0dHBzOi8vd3d3LmhpbmR1c3RhbnRpbWVzLmNvbS9jaXRpZXMvbXVtYmFpLW5ld3MvbmF2aS1tdW1iYWktY29hc3RhbC1yb2FkLWdldHMtbWN6bWEtY2xlYXJhbmNlLTEwMTY3NDU4OTA0MDQ2Ni5odG1s0gF4aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cuaGluZHVzdGFudGltZXMuY29tL2NpdGllcy9tdW1iYWktbmV3cy9uYXZpLW11bWJhaS1jb2FzdGFsLXJvYWQtZ2V0cy1tY3ptYS1jbGVhcmFuY2UtMTAxNjc0NTg5MDQwNDY2LWFtcC5odG1s?oc=5
