Mumbai, Feb 13: As part of the Mumbai Coastal Road (MCRP) North Project, 348 trees in Versova are set to be affected, including 80 inside Nana Nani Park. The BMC has put up notices inside the park, triggering anger among residents who say they were blindsided. For locals, this isn’t just about trees. It’s about losing one of the few breathing spaces left in an already choking suburb.

Phase II expansion and environmental cost

The 20-km Coastal Road will connect Versova to Dahisar at a cost of Rs 20,000 crore. With the first phase from Marine Drive to the Worli end of the Bandra-Worli Sea Link already open, Phase II aims to link the island city to the western suburbs — but at a significant environmental cost.

However, the elevated stretch from the Versova interchange to Bangur Nagar is set to impact 348 trees, while 1,113 trees have been identified along the Package A alignment at the interchange.

Notices under Trees Act trigger concern

The BMC pasted notices on several of the 80 trees inside Nana Nani Park marked for felling under Package A of the Coastal Road Phase II project. The notices have been placed on trees along the park’s western edge, signalling the stretch most likely to be cleared.

Citing Section 8(3) of the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975, the notice states that permission has been sought to remove trees in K/West ward from Versova Interchange to Bangur Nagar — a procedural step that signals the likely loss of these park trees.

Total tree impact and fishing community concerns

For Phase II of the Coastal Road, a total of 1,244 trees are expected to be affected along the full stretch up to Dahisar. Last year, local fishing communities raised strong objections, warning that the project would severely disrupt fishing activities along the Malvani, Marve and Charkop belts — threatening livelihoods and potentially forcing many small, traditional operators to shut down.

Mumbai, Feb 13: The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has a preferential right to develop its own land, the Bombay High Court held while dismissing a petition challenging the civic body’s decision to cancel a slum rehabilitation project in Malad East after finding non-compliance by the developer.

A bench of Justices Girish Kulkarni and Aarti Sathe, on Wednesday, dismissed a petition filed by Om Vishwashanti CHS (proposed) and developer Okhawala Shelter, Builders & Developers challenging a January 10, 2024 order cancelling a no-objection certificate (NOC) earlier granted for the project. The bench held that the cancellation was lawful and based on clear non-compliance.

Project on BMC-owned reserved land

The redevelopment concerned BMC-owned land, portions of which are reserved for a municipal ward office, disaster management facilities and a municipal chowky. The developer was required to incorporate these amenities into its plan and obtain approvals from civic authorities.

An NOC was issued in December 2021, followed by a Letter of Intent (LOI) from the Slum Rehabilitation Authority (SRA) in November 2022. The BMC later issued a show cause notice alleging that the developer had failed to submit feasible plans or secure departmental clearances despite repeated opportunities. The NOC was subsequently cancelled in January 2024.

Second round of litigation

This is the second round of litigation after the Supreme Court directed the High Court to rehear the matter following an earlier dismissal on technical grounds.

BMC cites non-compliance, public interest

BMC counsels Joel Carlos and Pushpa Yadav argued that as landowner, the corporation retains the authority to grant or revoke permissions when conditions are breached. The NOC and LOI, it said, explicitly required the developer to obtain approvals and provide workable plans for the reserved public facilities.

According to the civic body, the developer took virtually no effective steps for over a year after the LOI was issued, justifying cancellation in public interest.

The SRA, through advocate Jagdish Aradwad (Reddy), supported this position, noting its own decision to cancel the LOI after finding prolonged non-compliance.

Court upholds civic body’s preferential rights

Agreeing with the civic body, the bench said the cancellation order was well reasoned.

“The conduct of the Petitioners… smacks of non-compliant behavior” in meeting the NOC and LOI conditions, the court observed.

Emphasising ownership rights, the judges held: “It is the MCGM/BMC’s land… therefore the right of the owner… is a preferential right which needs to be of paramount importance, especially in a S.R. Scheme.” A developer’s rights, the court said, are purely contractual.

Petition dismissed

The court dismissed the petition and upheld the cancellation.

Mumbai, Feb 13: Diamond-studded gold ornaments worth Rs 57.24 lakh were allegedly misappropriated from a jewellery shop in Malad East, prompting the Dindoshi Police to register an FIR against a 42-year-old jeweller for cheating and criminal breach of trust.

Business dealings and trust

Complainant Jitendra Chhajed, 44, who runs Padmaprabhu Diamonds, told police he regularly supplies jewellery to traders on credit. Vijaykumar Bafna, who operates Vinod Jewellers in the same area, had earlier conducted transactions honestly, gaining Chhajed’s confidence.

Ornaments taken on pretext

On April 27, 2024, Bafna allegedly took several diamond-studded ornaments, claiming he needed to show them to a customer. After signing a receipt, he left with five necklace-earring sets, four necklaces and six bangles weighing 376.290 grams of 18-carat jewellery.

FIR registered

Police said Bafna neither returned the ornaments nor paid the amount, offering repeated excuses. A case was registered on February 12 under relevant Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita provisions.