Gargai Dam Gets Nod, Promises Relief from Drinking Water Crisis

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis has given the environmental and wildlife permissions needed for the Gargai Dam project. This decision was made during the 24th meeting of the Maharashtra State Wildlife Board held at the state secretariat. 

The forest department will now send the proposal to the National Wildlife Board. The Chief Minister has requested a quick approval of the project so that it is completed without delay. 

The Chief Minister said the project is important for meeting the water needs of Mumbai’s growing population. Forest Minister Ganesh Naik, State Ministers Ashish Jaiswal and Pankaj Bhoyar, Chief Secretary Sujata Saunik, and other officials were present in the meeting.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) plans to build the Gargai Dam at Wada in Palghar district. The estimated cost of the project is INR 5000 crore. The dam will be built once 844.879 hectares of land are cleared for use. This will help supply more drinking water to Mumbai. 

During the meeting, the officials also discussed development in eco-sensitive zones. They talked about areas along the tiger movement corridor. The corridor route should be mapped using data from the Centre’s Parivesh Portal. Permission from private landowners must be taken before using their land in this corridor.

The Chief Minister also said that private land should be used for afforestation. This is in exchange for forest land used in infrastructure projects. He said this should happen, especially along the tiger corridor near the tiger project.

The Gargai project was first discussed in 2012 by the BMC. No steps were taken until 2018. That year, the BMC started planning the project. The previous Mahavikas Aghadi government stopped the plan. They chose to build a desalination plant in Manori instead. 

Now, the Mahayuti government has restarted the dam project. Around 4.5 lakh trees will have to be cut down for this project. Mumbai currently gets water from seven lakes and reservoirs. After the Middle Vaitarna project, Gargai will be the second dam built to supply water to the city.

The city currently faces a daily water shortfall of 600 million litres since its daily water requirements are 4550 million litres and it only obtains 3950 million litres. Mumbai has been facing growing water demands due to its increasing population. The Gargai Dam project is expected to ease the city’s water shortage.