By Sachin Murdeshwar

Mumbai  : Drawing Mumbai’s citizens’ attention to an all-round destruction of environment under the guise of development, environmentalists have called for an immediate stoppage of land fill for JNPT SEZ, quarrying of Parsik Hills, destruction of trees on Aaray forest and pollution of rivers in the MMR area.

Speaking at a Media seminar organized by Mumbai Press Club in association with national communicators body Public Relations Council of India (PRCI), the activists said the city ecology is at the tipping point and unless corrective measures are taken, the metropolitan region will head for a serious trouble.

Pointing out the massive destruction of mangroves in Urban area by JNPT under the guise of landfill for its SEZ, Mr. Nandakumar Pawar, founder director of Shri Ekavira Aai Pratishtan (SEAP), said: “It beats common sense as to how the authorities are working on a new special economic zone when a similar project called NMSEZ is languishing in the neighborhood.”

JNPT, if at all wanted to develop an SEZ, could have taken over the NMSEZ and developed. The state government has recently cleared NMSEZ, after its flop for years, for an industrial city. In Dronagiri alone, NMSEZ covers 1,223.68 hectares its website says and this has not been used at all for anything, except that they built a huge compound wall, he said.

Hundreds fisher folk lost their source of income as wet lands have been gobbled up for NMSEZ. There has been a wanton destruction of mangroves already. “Now JNPT is repeating the show, we don’t know for whom?” Pawar wondered.

The NGT has ordered the authorities not to disturb the mangroves for their development, but what is happening today is a gross violation of the order, Pawar said showing photographs of destruction of mangroves by covering them with stones, debris and earth. Some areas look like desert lands as the lush green mangroves have been killed. “It is nothing short of murder,” he said.

On the one hand, CIDCO put up notices that the plant life should not be spoiled, while on the other the Corporation itself has stopped sea water flow to mangroves for developing a holding pond. Mangroves are now dying natural death, he said showing another photograph.

Pawar has recently complained to Konkan Divisional Commissioner about the environmental destruction and the latter sent CIDCO officials for an on-the-spot study.

Creek water flow has been blocked in this massive reclamation, he said disclosed: “local people have told us that the sea water has now begun to flow into paddy fields at Pen.”

SEAP has also written to the Thane collector to close the Parsik Hill quarry files for ever and not to entertain any fresh requests for renewal of licenses as the hill range has been plundered much beyond the permissible limits. CIDCO and Forest department have since done a joint study of the area.

While forests and wild life have been destroyed in the name of quarrying, snakes have begun to creep into residential areas in Nerul, Belapur and other places of Navi Mumbai.

Pawar has also vehemently opposed the chopping down of trees for Mumbai Metro project and said it is really sad that neither the government nor the officials are heeding to sane voice to protect the green patch.

Communication activist and media professional B N Kumar who launched his website – www.thenatureconnect.com – said he is not against development, but it need not happen at the cost of ecological destruction. PRCI launched a social media campaign #MumbaiSuffersWhoCares with an online petition to Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis which has already attracted close to 550 e-signatures.

Presenting a case for “protecting a unique urban wilderness” at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), naturalist Shardul Bajikar said protecting the forests of is only in the best interest of securing Mumbai’s drinking water.

“Forests of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park have a vital bearing on the ecological security of Mumbai city,” he said and pointed out that “the future of Mumbai city is entwined and inseparable with that of SGNP.” Bajikar, who also works with Natural History publications, expressed alarm at the unchecked encroachments at SGNP.

Dealing with the damage to the rivers being done in the city, Mr. Gopal Jhaveri, founder of River March movement, said: Over the last 25 years, ecology and environment of the city has been ignored in the name of development.

“We need an encroachment free non polluted Mumbai environment,” he said and called for declaring Aaray as a forest land and including the stretch in SGNP.”

He stressed the need for rejuvenating the four Rivers of Mumbai – Dahisar, Mithi, Poinsur and Oshiwara. He spoke about destruction of mangroves and called for saving the “the remaining 30% Mangroves” of Mumbai.

He recalled that in the wake of Mumbai deluge of July 2005, the Madhav Rao Chitale report on environmental management of Mumbai River and River Banks has clearly called for initiating the process of recovery of urban eco system, rejuvenation of degraded Urban Ecosystem including Lakes, Rivers, Creeks and Coastal Zone.

“Now, It is heart breaking to see the environmental destruction,” Jhaveri said.

He called for proper, scientific traffic management in the city to curtail air and noise pollution which is also of a major concern.

The activists were unanimous that only Mumbaikars will be able to save the city from the repeat of disasters and called for keep building pressure on powers that be. Jaago Mumbai, Jaago, PRCI said initiating a fresh campaign.