At Backbay, plan to reclaim 300 acres

MUMBAI: The BMC has proposed reclamation of land behind the National Centre for the Performing Arts (NCPA) and close to Macchimar Nagar at Backbay in south Mumbai for a 300-acre Central Park it wants to build there. The state government will be the owner of the reclaimed land, which will be the equivalent of 23 Oval Maidans.
This fresh attempt at reclamation, a controversial subject in Mumbai, comes even as it has emerged that most of the no-development zones or NDZs which are sought to be thrown open by the civic body for construction of affordable hous ing are between Andheri to Dahisar, areas which already have high population density .
Civic officials stated that around four decades ago, work on Backbay reclamation was stopped abruptly . An embankment bund which was constructed at that time however still exists. The plan is to build the Cen tral Park along the bund and is part of the revised draft development plan (DP2034), for which the BMC will invite suggestions and objections next month. The civic authority is, however, likely to face stiff opposition from activists. D Stalin, director of Vanashakti, accused the government of double standards.
“We had suggested to the government that instead of Aarey vernment that instead of Aarey Colony , they could construct the Metro-III car shed at Backbay after reclaiming a part of it. There, a retaining wall had been built long ago. But the panel appointed by CM rejected our suggestion. In their report, they said it was not feasible to build the shed there because it would be environmentally damaging. Now they are proposing to reclaim the entire area for the Central Park,“ he said.
Fishermen's union leader Damodar Tandel said his union had blocked reclamation four decades ago and would again oppose any such move as fisherfolk use Backbay to park their boats.
TOI had in 2013 reported that a government body was resuscitating plans of large-scale reclamation of land from the Arabian Sea--including expansion of the financial centre at Nariman Point.The expansion then envisaged the merging of railway land (Badhwar Park) with defence land and reclamation from the sea to create high-end residences and a financial centre. The plan included restoration and expansion of fishing villages; creation of a waterfront promenade; and development of a public park behind the National Centre for the Performing Arts.
Pankaj Joshi, executive director, Urban Design Research Institute, said, “ At least planners should keep demographics in mind.Two-thirds of the population lives in the suburbs. Even in the island city , the population is more to the north. Do they expect people to travel all the way to the southernmost tip of Mumbai to play?
It seems more a park for Alibaug.“ Joshi said the authorities should put the metro yard here, since the Metro III begins at this point. “They want to destroy biodiversity to build a metro yard, and they will reclaim to create a park. What kind of environmentally sensitive planning is this?“