In yet another gross violation of the Bombay High Court orders, large-scale mangrove excavation have been reported at Dronagiri in Uran, Navi Mumbai.
A police complaint has been lodged and the construction work stopped by Cidco
MUMBAI: In yet another gross violation of the Bombay High Court orders, large-scale mangrove excavation have been reported at Dronagiri in Uran, Navi Mumbai. That too right next to a Cidco board that forbids felling of mangroves in the area. However, after environmentalists took up the matter with the authorities, the alleged excavation was stopped and a complaint lodged with the Uran police station on Thursday.
The matter came to light when a team of Bombay Environmental Action Group headed by Debi Goenka and Cidco officials, including superintending engineers SS Chaudhary, MR Kachare, Sanjay Chotalia, senior planner Ravi Kumar, executive engineer of Dronagiri (I) VN Rao and executive engineer of Dronagiri (II) RJ Giri, visited the area on Monday.
The team found that Gammon India, the firm that has been contracted the job of laying a pipeline in the area by Gas Authority of India Limited (GAIL), had allegedly carried out the illegal excavation to cover the pipeline. Goenka said, “We noticed large-scale destruction of mangrove plantations due to the excavation at Karanja village in Dronagiri.”
When the matter was brought to the notice of Cidco officials, the construction work taking place near the MSEB gas turbines plant in Dronagiri was halted. The soil under the mangroves was being excavated to help close the mouth of a bund to stop water flow, he added.
Stating that Cidco authorities were aware about the work, Gammon India business development officer Rakesh Chaudhari said, “We have been contracted to lay a 17 km-long gas pipeline for which GAIL has obtained all the necessary permissions.” Unaware that a complaint had been lodged, Chaudhari promised to address the environmentalists’ concern. “GAIL should be answerable, as it owns the pipeline,” he added.
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
)
)
)
)
)
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}
){kind=small}