Sanjay Gandhi National Park faces mounting ecological pressure from major infra projects like the Borivali-Thane tunnel | File
Mumbai: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) Principal Bench in New Delhi has allowed the impleadment of the Mumbai Metropolitan Regional Development Authority (MMRDA) as a party in an ongoing matter related to the alleged environmental threat posed to Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) due to major infrastructure development projects.
Tribunal Takes Suo Motu Cognisance of GPlus Report
The case stems from a news report published in The Free Press Journal on January 17, 2024, titled “Sanjay Gandhi National Park Faces Threat As BMC Plans to Divert Forest Land For Bridge Reconstruction”.
Taking suo motu cognizance of the report, the Tribunal had initiated proceedings to examine the ecological impact of infrastructure activities near or within the forested boundaries of SGNP.
BMC to Resubmit Compliance Documents
During the latest hearing, counsel appearing for the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) informed the Tribunal that although compliance reports and permission-related documents had been filed in line with earlier directions, some technical defects had been flagged. The documents, the counsel said, would be refiled within a week.
The BMC also clarified that the construction of a significant infrastructure project—the twin tunnel underground road linking Thane and Borivali—was being handled by MMRDA. The civic body requested that MMRDA be added as a respondent, stating that it is the principal executing agency for the twin tunnel project running through SGNP.
Next NGT Hearing Set for September 24, 2025
The Tribunal, allowed the request and directed that the CEO of MMRDA be impleaded as an additional respondent in the case. The Tribunal further directed that notices be issued to MMRDA and instructed the applicant to serve the new respondent and submit an affidavit of service.
The matter is now scheduled to be heard next on September 24, 2025. As reported by The Free Press Journal, the BMC has proposed diverting approximately 7,836 square feet of SGNP forest land for the reconstruction and widening of the Shri Krishna Nagar Bridge in Borivali East.
Environmentalists Raise Red Flags on Forest Diversion
The bridge, which connects Shri Krishna Nagar, Abhinav Nagar, and Shantivan to the Western Express Highway, partially collapsed in 2021. Environmental activists have opposed the BMC’s plan to use protected forest land for the project.
The BMC claims to have received in-principle approval from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change under the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980 on August 8, 2023, for the proposed diversion.
In addition, the much larger Borivali-Thane Twin Tunnel Project—a 10-kilometre underground road stretching from the Western Express Highway near Borivali to Ghodbunder Road near Tikujiniwadi—had raised alarms among conservationists.
The proposed route apparently passes pass beneath sensitive ecological zones, including Tulsi Lake and other parts of SGNP, potentially impacting biodiversity and wildlife movement.
Environmentalists had then argued that increasing infrastructure pressure on SGNP poses a significant threat to one of Mumbai’s last remaining green lungs.
