Citizens fear uncertain fate of reclaimed land

“It is just one more in the onslaught of agencies attempting to get hold of the Coastal Road land and earn revenue from it,” said Alan Abraham, a Mumbai architect, reacting to the demand by ports and fisheries minister Nitesh Rane.

“The BMC has spent ₹14,000 crore on a project that has no revenue coming from it; it is now putting up its hands when it comes to spending ₹400 crore on the open spaces. Fire stations, police stations, STPs, parking lots are coming up on the reclaimed land, all of which is a prelude to builders coming in. The government is using every department to gain access to a revenue model on the Coastal Road, which is its final aim.”

Breach Candy residents, who have a clear view of the Coastal Road’s reclaimed land from their homes, are wary of what will become of the reclaimed land bank. “It’s not clear what this could mean,” said resident Shyam Lulla. “But any commercial activity would be going against the Supreme Court’s verdict.”

A member of the Breach Candy Residents’ Forum added, “The BCRF has consistently advocated for a Coastal Forest Park on the reclaimed land, aligning with the Supreme Court’s orders. The city needs lungs to breathe.”

Another Breach Candy resident and lawyer Nilesh Parekh, however, believes, “Monetisation of the reclaimed land is being done carefully, as per the law, for the purpose of recovering costs, despite the undertaking to the Supreme Court. The authorities will recover their funds and use out-of-the-box means to achieve this.”