Eye in sky to help map eco-sensitive spots

“We have started the process to initiate the mapping and will approach the agencies concerned soon. We will first study how Thane and Kohlapur and other civic bodies have done it to get a better understanding,” said A T Shintre,director,engineering services and projects.

The civic administration will prepare a coastal zone management plan (CZMP) after identifying these areas with a cadastral map in the scale of 1:4000.

According to a senior official,“Currently,the maps of 1:25,000 scale are not very accurate and sometimes lead to ambiguities. For example,we gave some benefit of doubt to a builder regarding the boundary of a plot as the measurement was done on a larger scale. The maps prepared on the basis of 1:4000 scale will be highly accurate and there won’t be any ambiguity regarding the area of the plots.”

According to officials,remote sensing technology will be used to map these spots.

Apart from discouraging additional and illegal construction due to ambiguities in the maps,the cadastral survey will also ensure that any harm to these ecologically sensitive spots can be reported and held as violations,said an official.

The preparation of maps will also include marking boundaries for the gaothans and koliwadas in the city. An official said,“The BMC does not have the details of the measurements and properties regarding gaothans and koliwadas. These are with the state and we will ask them to supply us with the records so that we can include these in the CZMP maps and finalise the extent of these areas on all sides.”

Based on these maps,the development plan for the gaothans and koliwadas will later be prepared by the state.

The civic administration will soon send letters to seven agencies to invite expressions of interest,including the Space Application Centre in Ahmedabad,Centre for Earth Sciences Studies in Thiruvananthapuram,Institute of Remote Sensing,Anna University in Chennai,Institute of Wetlands Management and Ecological Designs in Kolkata,Naval Hydrographers Office in Dehradun,National Institute of Oceanography in Panjim and National Institute of Ocean Technology in Chennai.