Navi Mumbai plans mangrove park, environmentalists hail decision

Mumbai: In a bid to boost conservation initiatives in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region, a mangrove park is being planned in the satellite township of Navi Mumbai.

NMMC’s Municipal Commissioner and Administrator Dr Kailesh Shinde made the announcement while presenting NMMC Budget 2025-2026.

The project would be undertaken with the help of the Maharashtra Forest Department (MFD).

The move has been welcomed by environmentalists in the Mumbai metropolitan region.

NatConnect Foundation recalled that the then Konkan Divisional Commissioner Jagdish Patil, who also headed the High Court-mandated Mangrove Protection and Conservation Committee, agreed long ago to set up a Mangrove Park in the city to work as an endeavour to educate the people on the importance of the tidal plants.

The activists renewed their demand as the State Mangrove Cell embarked on a mangrove park project at Gorai which is expected to be ready by May.

NMMC city engineer Shirish Aradwad confirmed that the civic body will work with the state forest department on setting up the mangrove park in the city.

The civic body has also planned a butterfly park at Nerul off Palm Beach Marg by planting a large number of host species of plants.

Green groups also appreciated the Gorai mangrove trail which would help educate the citizens importance of the sea plants which serve as frontline soldiers protecting the coasts during tsunamis, tidal attacks, and storms and act as breeding grounds for host fish and crabs. Mangroves are also inexpensive rainforests since they grow on their own, unlike the terrestrial plants on which the governments spend crores of rupees.

Meanwhile, responding to activists’ demands to increase the city’s green cover to contain air pollution, NMMC said it will plant 45,000 saplings with the target of increasing the green zone by 40 hectares. It also planned to set up static fog cannon machines at eight locations in the city and deploy dust suppression vehicles.

Environmentalists have also called for a comprehensive environment policy for incorporating rainwater harvesting and harnessing solar power at various civic office buildings, to begin with.

In fact, NatConnect had in its suggestions to the draft development plan suggested that all new buildings must be strictly made to implement solar power, rainwater harvesting, and recycling of sewer water and garbage. The urban garbage management should not remain an NMMC project: it must be a household project; the environment watchdog told the civic officials during the hearings on the DP.

NMMC must take effective steps to take over all open spaces and plots, irrespective of size, and not permit CIDCO to undertake any new development in the NMMC area, Kumar said.

Instead of creating more concrete jungles under the guise of redevelopment projects, we need to create urban forests, said activist Madhu Shankar.

The forests created at Kopar Khairane and Nerul are good examples, she said and pointed out: “We need to have more such projects on Parsik Hills and other areas such as Vashi, Nerul, Sanpada, Airoli and in the MIDC industrial belt”.