Newlinkroad's Blog

A brief note/summary of the site visit conducted on April 1, 2022

Participants: Dr. Rajinder Singh & team, Mumbai March, New Link Road Residents Forum

Assembly: SGNP at 7.30 am

• Check dam inside SGNP was visited & issues related to contamination of Dahisar River inside SGNP were discussed.
• Tabela next to WEH was found to be contaminating Dahisar River by discharging animal dung.

• Slums along Dahisar highway were found to be discharging sewage & drain into the Dahisar River.
• In Dahisar West slums discharge sewage into the River & Dhobi talao along River seen.

• All along the Dahisar River MCGM approved buildings discharging waste into the River.
• Towards the end of Dahisar River where it meets the Dahisar creek, the River bed looks acidic.
• Visited Prithvi Palace CHSL terrace to get an aerial view of the vast stretch of Wetlands & Mangroves. Observations as under
• Rampant & unchecked construction of illegal slums encroaching into the mangroves.
• The sewage output of these slums is into the wetlands.
• Large number of public toilets were constructed on the creek with direct discharge into the sea.
• All garbage dumped in to the mangroves & subsequently burnt destroying moangroves.
• Large number of tourist buses illegally parked on reclaimed coastal water bodies.
• Constant threat to eco sensitive wetlands from Government / BMC planning new roads / bridges.

Solutions suggested:

1. More checkered dams inside SGNP for water retention.
2. Cutting of sewage discharge into the river inside SGNP.
3. Closure of tabela near WEH.
4. Cutting all sewage discharge from slums & buildings along the river.
5. Removal of retention walls along the river.
6. De- concretization of River bed.
7. Put up nets at strategic locations to collect the garbage & waste flowing in the River.
8. Cleaning of River & plantation of trees along the river.
9. Clear encroachments on the mangroves & wetlands ( Collector & BMC)
10. Demarcate the mangrove area coordinates as per the High Court orders & clear all encroachments beyond the demarcated area (Collector, BMC & Mangroves Cell).
11. Clear all toilets with discharge into the sea.
12. Clear garbage strewn across the slums.
13. Ensure roads/bridges planned by authorities are realistic with minimum environmental damage.