The Maharashtra Land Records Department will soon conduct a resurvey to define new boundaries of mangrove belts on private and government land across the coastal area of the state. The decision was taken during a meeting recently held at the chamber of Maharashtra Forest Minister Sudhir Mungantiwar, in the presence of Principal Secretary (Forest) B Venugopal Reddy and Shiv Sena MLA Pratap Sarnaik.
Highlighting the woes of farmers and salt cultivators because of mangroves overshooting their boundaries, Sarnaik had moved a call-to-attention motion in the budget session of the state assembly. He contended that the farmers and salt cultivators faced huge losses because of the mangroves growing on potential agricultural and salt pan land by crossing the defined boundaries because of various factors, including seeds flowing with rainwater.
Last survey conducted in 2005
The last survey to define boundaries for mangrove belts was conducted way back in 2005. The mangrove cover in the state coastal districts have witnessed a significant increase in the past 18 years.
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“Apart from promising a resurvey, the forest minister has also assured to interact with the Urban Development Department to review our demands of giving monetary compensation or grant Transfer Development Rights (TDR) to farmers and sons of the soil whose land have been affected by mangroves after 2005,” said Sarnaik.
Concern over rampant destruction of mangroves
Pointing to the unchecked destruction of mangroves, environmentalist Dhiraj Parad said, “While there is no harm in conducting a resurvey and awarding rights to farmers, the Google Earth Engine maps the mangrove belts on a regular basis. The larger concern which needs attention is the rampant destruction of mangroves by the land mafia who dump debris and reclaim land by carrying out illegal constructions in coastal regulation zones which is the root cause of the problem.”
Suresh Golani
Move comes after Bombay High Court's order
Around 1,036 hectare (more than 2,500 acres) of mangrove belts in the twin-city have been declared as reserved forests.
The move is in accordance with directions issued by the Bombay High Court to hand over all mangrove areas on the state land to the Forest Department for better conservation and to improve the protection of mangroves as they act as buffers during natural disasters such as tsunamis and cyclones. Destruction of mangrove forests across the state and constructions within 50 m of mangrove areas has been banned by the judiciary. The government has established a special cell for protection of mangroves.
