Bombay High Court Gives Nod For Vadhvan Port Project in Maharashtra’s Palghar district ; NHAI Permitted To fell 208 Mangrove Trees For 8-lane Highway

Picture : ANI/X

The Bombay high court has paved the way for accelerated execution of the Vadhvan Port Project in Maharashtra’s Palghar district by granting clearance for the removal of mangrove patches located within the approach area of the near-shore reclamation zone.

A bench of Justices Bharati Dangre and Manjusha Deshpande, in the order passed on Tuesday, said the project is of public importance and has wider economic significance.

The bench has permitted the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to fell 208 mangrove trees for the construction of an eight-lane access-controlled highway linking the upcoming port in Palghar district to NH-48.

The court added that the project proponent had secured all necessary environmental, coastal regulation zone and forest clearances, besides complying with compensatory afforestation requirements.

The project was in the larger public interest and would provide crucial connectivity to the proposed Vadhavan Port, which has been identified as a nationally important infrastructure project, HC said.

“In our view, the said project being of public utility, would provide connectivity to the Vadhavan Port which is being developed as a major port on landlord port development model, which would open an opportunity for India to make it into the countries with top 10 container ports in the world,” the court said.

The NHAI had approached the court seeking approval in view of earlier directions passed by the high court in a long-pending mangrove protection PIL, which requires prior court permission for the destruction of mangroves even in public projects.