Updated: September 3, 2020 2:19:18 pm
The Aarey Milk Colony, which spans 3,162 acres, was established in 1949 as a milk processing and trading center for Mumbai and adjacent areas.
Maharashtra Prime Minister Uddhav Thackeray announced on Tuesday (September 1) that the state government would appoint a 600 acre plot of land in the heart of Mumbai city like a reserved forest.
Where is this land found?
The Aarey Milk Colony, which spans 3,162 acres, was established in 1949 as a milk processing and trading center for Mumbai and adjacent areas.
Over the past 70 years, this sprawling green area has been steadily eaten at its edges, and the state acquired 1,282 acres for projects like Film City.
Once located on the outskirts of the city, it is now part of the sprawling western suburb known as Goregaon. Only more than 1,800 acres of green space, home to 290 wild species of flora and fauna, remain in the last green bastion of the rapid concretion of Mumbai.
Is the area under threat of invasion?
The land belongs to the eco-sensitive zone of Sanjay Gandhi National Park and is home to around 10,000 people who live in 27 tribal villages.
As Mumbai rapidly urbanizes and takes on high-cost infrastructure projects like the Metro, a section of urban and transportation planners had expressed the need to utilize a portion of this vast open space.
Aarey has been at the center of a storm since October last year, after Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) decided to build a shed for the Rs 32,000 crore Colaba-Bandra-Seepz Metro underground corridor, and cleared the site of more than 2000 trees, sparking a public outcry.
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In the run-up to the Maharashtra Assembly elections, the Shiv Sena led by Yuva Sena’s boss, Aaditya Thackeray, had taken up the environmental issue and protested against the proposed car shed. After being sworn in as Chief Minister, Uddhav Thackeray suspended work on the car shed.
So has Uddhav insulated the Aarey forest area from future invasion threats?
On Tuesday, the Chief Minister announced that he planned to designate Aarey’s forest land as reserve forest. However, of the more than 1,800 acres of open space available, only 600 acres will be allocated as forest.
The reserved land parcel does not include the land on which the controversial car shed for the 33.5 km long Colaba-Bandra-Seepz corridor was expected to arise.
What is the process of allocating land as forest?
Under Section 4 of the Indian Forest Act 1927, the state government may “constitute any land in a reserved forest” by issuing a notice in the Official Gazette, “stating that it has been decided that such land it is a reserved forest “, and” specifying, as far as possible, the situation and the limits of said terrain “.
According to the law, the government must also appoint a Forest Settlement Officer (FSO) “to investigate and determine the existence, nature and scope of any right that is alleged to exist in favor of any person in or on any land within said limits. or in or on any forest product, and deal with it ”.
The FSO will seek suggestions and objections from residents and others within 45 days after the process begins. After taking into account the suggestions and objections, the process of turning the land into a reserved forest will be completed. From then on, the area will be protected from any construction.
So why has the government decided to notify the area as forest at this time?
The Shiv Sena had presented himself as a champion of environmental concerns by opposing the construction of the Metro car shed on Aarey land.
But while Thackeray imposed a suspension on construction after becoming CM, a four-member committee of officials he had appointed recommended lifting the suspension. In its report presented in January, the Committee noted that there was no viable alternative to the car shed.
Thackeray, however, has insisted that an alternative must be found. Last week, he held a meeting on the issue with senior state government officials, during which it emerged that he was informed that finding a new plot would lead to cost overruns and massive delays.
While the state continues to search for a viable plot, the decision to notify part of Aarey as a forest is seen as an attempt to erect a defense against a possible pushback from environmentalists and Mumbai aroused constituency should the state eventually follow go ahead with building the car. shed in Aarey.
The fact that the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) elections are less than 18 months away has also influenced the announcement. The Shiv Sena would like to affirm that he has taken steps to improve the quality of life in Mumbai.
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