The Maharashtra government has proposed to build a protective wall around Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) at a cost of INR 196 crore. The decision comes after the Bombay High Court (HC) criticised the state for failing to control encroachments and address the rehabilitating slum dwellers within the park.
The park spans 103.84 square kilometres, covering parts of Thane and Mumbai. To move forward with the construction of the compound wall, the state issued 16 government resolutions (GRs) on Monday, February 24. The wall will safeguard the park from further encroachments.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis will hold a meeting on Tuesday to consider the rehabilitation of slumdwellers. It will also focus on the 90 acres of land that will be given to the Maharashtra Housing Area and Development Authority (MHADA).
Later, the state will submit an affidavit to the High Court after the meeting. The affidavit will contain the approach to both preserving the park and relocating the slum dwellers.
The High Court, led by a bench of Justice Amit Borkar and former Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya, had asked the state to present a clear plan. The court wants to make sure of the removal of slums that were established before January 1, 1995. This order is part of a contempt petition related to non-compliance with a 1995 public interest litigation (PIL) ruling.
The court stressed the importance of protecting SGNP, focusing on the risk to the two lakes within the park that supply water to Mumbai if encroachments continue unchecked.
The GRs reveal that the wall will be built along Mulund, Yeoor, and Ghodbunder Road in Thane, near Dahisar, Magathane, and Vihar Lake. The state is expected to provide detailed construction and administrative plans to the High Court soon.
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