Residents protest logging in Mumbai Aarey Forest on September 15, 2019 (PTI Photo / Shashank Parade)
Last year’s cases against citizens and environmentalists who protested against the Aarey project and the felling of trees in that area have also been dropped.
- News18.com Mumbai
- Last update: October 11, 2020 5:26 PM IST
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Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray announced on Sunday that the proposed new car shed for the Mumbai metro will be moved to Kanjurmarg to save forests in the Aarey colony area. He also announced that 800 acres of Aarey’s land have been declared as forest, compared to 600 before.
In a webcast, Thackeray said that the project will be moved to government land in Kanjurmarg and that no cost will be incurred for the purpose. “The land will be available at zero rate,” he said.
He said the building that has been erected in the Aarey Forest will be used for some other public purpose.
“An expense of approximately Rs 100 million was incurred for this purpose and it will not be wasted,” he said, adding that there will be no infringement of tribal rights in the Aarey forest.
“Biodiversity in Aarey must be conserved and protected. Nowhere is there an 800-acre jungle in an urban setting. Mumbai has natural forest cover,” he said.
Last year’s cases against citizens and environmentalists who protested the Aarey project and logging in that area have been dropped, Thackeray added.
The move to relocate Aarey’s car shed came amid reports that the state government was considering whether two of the upcoming Metro lines could share maintenance facilities. It had appointed the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation to prepare a feasibility study on Metro 3 (Colaba-Bandra-Seepz) sharing its carport with Line 6 (Vikhroli-Lokhandwala).
There were also reports that Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd officials had expressed fears that the Metro Line 3 project could be delayed for three years and its cost could rise by more than Rs 2 billion if the line shed is moved from Aarey Colony. Former chief minister and opposition leader Devendra Fadnavis recently said that the state government’s plan to relocate Aarey’s Metro 3 car shed was a reflection of incorrect policy.
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