July 2, 2025: In a significant development for the Mumbai Coastal Road (North) project, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has received in-principle approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEFCC) for the diversion of mangroves. The clearance, granted on June 19 , allows BMC to move a step closer to launching Phase 2 of the ambitious Versova–Bhayandar corridor.
BMC will now approach the Bombay High Court for final approval and seek working permission to begin on-ground construction, which is expected to commence in August 2025, with a targeted completion date of December 2028.
On Tuesday, Additional Municipal Commissioner (Projects) Abhijit Bangar conducted a project review. While the stretch from Bandra to Versova is being developed by MSRDC, the Versova–Bhayandar section falls under BMC’s jurisdiction. The nearly 60-kilometre corridor will include elevated roads, tunnels, interchanges, bridges, and connectors, significantly reducing commute time between Bhayandar and Versova from 90–120 minutes to just 15–20 minutes.
However, the project will have ecological implications. A permanent impact on 8.2 hectares of mangrove area—around 9,000 trees—has been noted. Additionally, 68.5 hectares and 36,000 trees in the project’s shadow zone will face temporary disturbance during construction. A mangrove restoration plan, overseen by the Mumbai Mangrove Cell, has been prepared and funded by BMC. It includes the plantation of 1.4 lakh mangrove saplings and afforestation of 31 hectares in Bhayandar.
For compensatory afforestation, BMC will also hand over 103.7 hectares of non-forest land in Vihirgaon, Chandrapur, to the Forest Department.
While the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) approved the second phase in August 2024, work orders issued in February 2024 were stalled due to pending permissions. The MoEFCC’s CRZ clearance, granted in November 2024, now paves the way for execution.
Source: Times Of India
