3,000 tree-strong Jijamata Udyan is just a zoo in plan

MUMBAI: Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyaan (Jijamata Udyan) at Byculla, the prominent heritage botanical garden and zoo in the island city, has been classified as just a ‘zoo’ in the draft development plan (DP) 2034. This garden is said to have more than 3,000 trees of 286 different species.
The garden, which was earlier known as Victoria Garden, falls in the heritage list, having been given a Grade II-B status as well.This change in reservation has irked members of Save Rani Bagh Botanical Garden Foundation, which has been trying hard to preserve the botanical garden from redevelopment.
The foundation has claimed in the earlier DP, the entire campus was designated as a garden, a provision which they said was scientifically accurate, providing a measure of protection to the island city’s sole heritage botanical garden and largest agglomeration of trees. Although the Udyan is a dual facility that houses a large botanical garden and a zoo as well—it occupies just 18% of the total area—the botanical garden predates the zoo by nearly 30 years and occupies an overwhelmingly larger part of the area—63% of it.
“VJB Udyan, earlier known as Rani Bagh, has been wrongly designated as just a zoo in the draft DP 2014-34. In the proposed land use (PLU) map, the designation of VJB Udyan is marked as DOS2.3, which is classified as a zoo. We condemn this wrongful and mala fide designation in the strongest possible terms. It should be duly noted that both DP 1991 as well as DP 1967 clearly designated the entire VJB Udyan campus as a garden, a provision that provided a measure of protection to the largest agglomeration of trees. The very reason for the erstwhile VJB Udyan in the 1800s was to establish a grand, awe-inspiring public botanical garden. It was set up by the Agri Horticultural Society of Western India as a botanical garden and is visited by thousands of people,” said Hutokshi Rustomfram, trustee of the foundation.
The foundation has demanded that the designation for VJB Udyan should be changed back to the original garden.
“The authorities have suddenly changed the designation even though the previous designation was achieved. While gardens are non-buildable, a zoo is buildable space, which has been given an FSI of 5 in the draft DP 2034. We can’t imagine any construction on this large open green space as whenever one goes to the VJB Udyan we find greenery in whichever direction we look at. It has around 286 species of trees and around 3,000 trees,” said Shubhada Nikharge, trustee of the foundation.