Plans to extend into salt pan lands in Mumbai’s eastern suburbs as part of the Dharavi redevelopment project have raised concerns about an impending environmental catastrophe. In the second installment of its series, Mid-Day interviews critics, environmentalists, and specialists who caution that restoring open spaces and salt pans could raise the risk of floods and upset the delicate ecological balance.
In October of this year, the Bombay High Court also heard a challenge to the case. Mumbai-based lawyer Sagar Devre expressed concerns regarding the ecological importance of salt pan land, highlighting its function as an essential component of the coastal ecosystem. In addition to preserving biological balance, this area supports mangroves, marshes, and estuaries and gives salt harvesters a means of subsistence.
Devre pointed out that because salt pans are low-lying places, they naturally absorb rainwater and keep flooding from getting out of control. Environmental catastrophes would result from permitting construction on these places, he cautioned.
Devre contested the statutory validity of an August 23 Office Memorandum issued by the Department for Promotion of Industry and Internal Trade (DPIIT) authorising the transfer of three salt pan land parcels in Kanjurmarg, Bhandup, and Mulund to the Maharashtra government for the Dharavi redevelopment project in the Public Interest Litigation (PIL) filed in the Bombay High Court. He contends that the OM, an executive order, is illegal under several statutes, such as the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) Notification, 2019, the Wetland (Conservation & Management) Rules, 2017, and the Environment (Protection) Act, 1986.
Additionally, according to Devre’s appeal, previous DPIIT standards limited the transfer of salt pan lands to state or federal governments or associated public sector businesses. Since the Adani Group owns 80% of DRPPL, the DPIIT notified the Maharashtra government in November 2023 that the land could not be transferred to the company.
Additionally, according to the petition, the salt pan land is in the intertidal zone (Coastal Regulation Zone 1B), which forbids development. According to Devre, the land transfer and related practices are in violation of the Wetland (Conservation and Management) Rules of 2010 and 2017, as well as decisions made by the Bombay High Court and the Supreme Court.
Significant legal and environmental issues have been raised by Devre’s criticism of the lack of public consultation, claiming that the memorandum was issued without the required statutory support.
Source: Mid-day
