The Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change (MoEF) has cleared the orders to cut 53,467 mangrove trees in Thane, Navi Mumbai and Palghar district so Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train project work can be continued without any intervention, the National High Speed Rail Corporation Limited (NHSRCL) told the Bombay high court (HC).
NHSRCL who is executing the mega project has all the necessary permissions to build the bullet train. NHSRCL had approached the court for permission to chop off over 13 hectors mangroves. In March 2019, Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority had told the court that it had given its nod for cutting down 53,000 mangrove trees for the project.
The firm’s lawyer told the HC that NHSRCL was willing to plant five times the number of mangrove trees that will be affected by the high-speed rail corridor, as against the statutory requirement of thrice the number of trees.
Mumbai-Ahmedabad bullet train is expected to reduce the travel time between from six-and-a-half hours to two-and-a-half hours.