Over 3.10 lakh trees and 600 families to be affected: After state wildlife board nod, Gargai dam awaits three more approvals

Proposed to come up inside the Tansa Wildlife Sanctuary, Gargai dam project is pegged to augment the civic supply in Mumbai by 440 million litres of water per day (MLD).

Presently, the city’s seven reservoirs are able to supply 3,950 MLD of water daily as against the city’s actual demand of 4,505 MLD of water per day.

Gargai dam is one among the four major water supply projects that the government has conjured to to bridge the existing gap as future proof the city whose water demand is projected to touch 6,535 MLD by 2041.

Nearly a decade since the project was first conceived, the dam works received a crucial nudge on Thursday from the state wildlife board which approved clearances for several projects, in a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.

As per the proposal, of the 844 hectares of land cleared for the project, nearly 652 hectares encompass forest area at Tansa wildlife sanctuary.

Over 3.10 lakh trees of 79 different species are slated to be affected to pave the way for the project.

Even so, the project now awaits three key approvals including from National Wildlife Board, Forest Advisory Committee (FAC) clearance as well as the Forest Development Corporation of Maharashtra (FDCM).

The top civic body brass confirmed to the The Indian Express that the tendering process of the project will commence only after acquiring nods from National Wildlife Board.

While the National Wildlife board approvals and the FAC clearance will be issued by the Centre, the FDCM nod will be given by the state government.

“Before commencing the tendering and construction works, the project requires three major approvals. Of these, one is from the forest department which includes two stages encompassing approvals from the State Wildlife Board as well as National Wildlife Board, since this project passes through a wildlife protected area. While we have now received the nod from the state board, the proposal will be forwarded to National Wildlife Board in the next week. Meanwhile, the other two approvals which are presently awaited include the FAC clearances from the Centre and FDCM approval from the forest department,” said a senior BMC official.

According to senior officials, while the FAC permission pertains to the diversion of forest lands, approvals from state government’s FDCM have been sought to procure over 400 hectares of land in Palghar for rehabilitation of affected villages.

Located in Wada taluka, these lands will be used for the rehabilitation of more than 600 families from nearly six villages, which are set to be affected during the course of the project.

“Besides land parcels for their residence, the families will also be provided with farmlands for farming,” said a senior official from the BMC.
Amid the tendering process awaited, BMC officials said that construction of the project —which encompasses a dam wall along with a network of pipelines —will likely be executed over a period of three years after tenders are awarded.