Mumbai citizens seek urban coastal forest at open space along Coastal Road Project
Of the 111 hectares of land reclaimed from the sea to develop MCRP, BMC has earmarked 70 hectares with a plan to develop an open landscape encompassing green pockets, gardens, cycling tracks and amphitheatres.
While the 7.5-km promenade is likely to open by May 2025, development of the open spaces on the landward side is yet to kick off. (Image: mchi.net) With the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) eyeing to rope in private parties to develop and maintain open space along the Mumbai Coastal Road Project (MCRP), citizens have called upon the civic body to establish a “dense, native tree forest” at the 70-hectares of the land parcel in the periphery of the arterial road.
Of the 111 hectares of land reclaimed from the sea to develop MCRP, BMC has earmarked 70 hectares with a plan to develop an open landscape encompassing green pockets, gardens, cycling tracks and amphitheatres. The civic body also plans to develop a brand new Marine Drive-like 7.5-km long promenade along the city’s coast.
While the 7.5-km promenade is likely to open by May 2025, development of the open spaces on the landward side is yet to kick off.
In January, BMC invited an Expression of Interest (EoI) from private companies and voluntary organisations for the design, development, and maintenance of the massive land parcel.
Amid the ongoing process, Save Our Coast Mumbai Sunday launched an online petition addressed to the Centre, the Maharashtra Government, and BMC, saying the creation of a much needed green lung for the city will improve its Air Quality Index (AQI) by at least 50-100 points.
The petition, which has received more than 13,500 signatures, called on state and central governments to “commit to protecting the Coastal Forest – keeping it free from commercial exploitation; ensure transparent public consultation in planning decisions; and follow ecological zoning principles to maximize community benefits”.
It also sought to establish a citizen-government oversight committee for accountability; integrate the forest into Mumbai’s climate resilience strategy – (MCAP) to improve air quality, flood prevention, and urban cooling; and enact legal protections to prevent future encroachments.
In their vision for the open space, citizens have called for an east-west zoning with the petition stating that while the eastern buffer can be developed as a “dense forest protecting residential areas”, the western open space can be developed as a “publicly accessible green area with native flora”. For the central forest, the petitioners have appealed for “walking trails with medicinal and fruit-bearing trees”.
The petitioners also demanded that authorities follow ecological zoning principles as well as incorporate the Mumbai Climate Action Plan (MCAP) into the forest planning.
“It’s been done before, And it works,” they said while pointing to urban forests which “have transformed air quality in major cities worldwide”.
Currently, BMC is gauging the responses to its EoI, which is expected to close on Wednesday.
Before the final EoI was floated, the civic body had also invited suggestions and objections from citizens for the open space roadmap, after the initial plans drew flak from city-based urban planners and architects.
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