Bombay HC Clears Felling Of 847 Mangroves For Mumbai-Ahmedabad Bullet Train Project, Says Distant Afforestation Cannot Replace Local Ecology

Mumbai, August 4, 2026: The Bombay High Court on Tuesday permitted the felling of 847 mangrove trees and 196 non-mangrove trees for a 132 KV transmission line from Dahanu to the proposed Ambesarai traction substation in Palghar district, a key infrastructure project linked to the Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train corridor.

Permission Granted As Exception

However, the court made it clear that the permission was being granted only because of the project's national importance and should not be treated as a precedent. It ruled that, in future, compensatory afforestation at locations far away from the affected area would not be allowed.

A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad observed, "We make it clear that the present permission… is granted as an exceptional case and having regard to the national importance of the project. In future, this Court shall not grant permissions where compensatory afforestation is proposed at locations far removed from the area affected."

The order came on a petition filed by the Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Ltd. (MSETCL), which sought permission to divert 3.3561 hectares of forest land, including 1.9656 hectares of mangroves, for laying the transmission line that will supply electricity to the bullet train project.

Ecological Restoration Emphasised

Emphasising the purpose of compensatory afforestation, the Bench said it cannot be reduced to a numerical exercise. "Compensatory afforestation is not intended to be a mere numerical replacement of trees felled for a project. Its purpose is ecological restoration," the court said.

It added that restoration is meaningful only if plantations are carried out in the same ecological region or, if that is not possible, in the nearest adjoining area. "Plantation undertaken hundreds of kilometres away may satisfy a statistical requirement, but fails to restore the environmental benefits of the affected locality," the Bench observed.

The court had earlier expressed concern over the steady loss of mangroves in Mumbai and the metropolitan region, warning that if green cover continues to shrink, "a day may not be far when people will carry oxygen cylinders to take oxygen shots."

Afforestation Plan

Under the approved plan, MSETCL will plant 26,664 mangrove saplings over six hectares at Panchali, Dehane and Asangaon in Palghar district, with tidal channelling, fencing and maintenance for 10 years.

For the 196 non-mangrove trees being cut, the Forest Department will undertake compensatory afforestation by planting 7,457 trees over 6.71 hectares of degraded forest land at Katphal village in Solapur district.

The Bombay Environmental Action Group opposed the proposal, arguing that plantations nearly 500 km away could not offset the ecological loss in Dahanu. While accepting this concern, the High Court allowed it as a one-time exception since all statutory approvals had been obtained and the project was of national importance.

State Pulled Up

The Bench also criticised the State government for failing to implement its earlier directions to create land banks for afforestation, maintain a public portal with plantation details and establish a transparent monitoring mechanism, calling the inaction "administrative apathy".

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It directed the Chief Secretary and senior forest officials to ensure compliance within four weeks and ordered MSETCL and forest authorities to file status and audit reports every six months for the next 10 years, warning that any default would invite contempt proceedings.

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