CM: Relax coastal rules for Mumbai

MUMBAI: Chief Minister Vilas Deshmukh on Friday urged Union Minister for Environment and Forests A Raja to relax the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) rules for Mumbai, saying it is a prerequisite to complete several developmental projects, reconstruct hundreds of dilapidated buildings, and resettle lakhs of slum-dwellers.

Raja assured Deshmukh that he would put in his best efforts to make Mumbai an exception to the rules. But he warned that the judiciary and environmentalists had become extra-sensitive after the 2004 tsunami.

Deshmukh’s request came at a meeting organised by the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board. Metropolitan Commissioner (MMRDA) T Chandra Shekhar made a presentation on the state’s behalf.

Deshmukh told the minister that the Centre must make an exception for Mumbai as it is not only the country’s commercial capital but also a “mini-India”. “If Mumbai’s overall development is ensured and expedited, it will have a direct impact on the development of the country,” he said.

These demands should not be seen as an attempt to exploit and damage the eco-system but as a “necessary evil”, he said.

Chandra Shekhar cited several cases in which ambitious projects were stalled by the CRZ rules. Referring to the DM Sukthankar Committee report, he said it is necessary to grant “permission for reconstruction of unauthorised but tolerable structures in CRZ-II areas”.

The government pleaded for modification of the need for a 50m buffer zone along mangroves. It asked that the development of vacant plots between 200 and 500m of the high-tide line be allowed.