Mumbai: MCZMA Grants Approval For Hoardings Along Coastal Road, Activists Demand Stay Over Environmental Concerns

Despite opposition from local residents, activists, and political parties, the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) recently granted approval for hoardings at three specific locations along the coastal road. However, activist have raised concerns and appealed to the Ministry of Environment and Forests (MoEF) to impose a stay on the implementation of the MCZMA's approval. 

In a recent meeting, the MCZMA approved the BMC's proposal for installing hoardings in South Mumbai, specifically near Tata Garden, Amazon Garden, and Lala Lajpatrai Garden. These hoardings are expected to generate a revenue of approximately Rs. One crore per month for the BMC. The MCZMA granted approval with strict conditions such as the hoardings must be positioned on the landward side of the road or existing structures.

The responsibility of ensuring compliance with this rule rests with the BMC, said civic sources. Meanwhile, Godfrey Pimenta of WatchDog Foundation has written a letter to secretary of MoEF requesting them to impose a stay on the implementation of the approval granted by MCZMA to prevent further violations of environmental norms.

Nicholas Almeida, another activist said, "This approval is in clear violation of Condition No. A(vi) - Specific Condition of the Environmental Clearance dated 11th May 2017, issued by the MoEF and Climate Change for the Coastal Road Project. The said condition explicitly states that the reclaimed land of 90 hectares shall not be utilised for any residential or commercial purposes."However, a senior civic official claimed "Since the hoardings are not on the coastal road, no CRZ norms have been violated."