Navi Mumbai: Member calls HC appointed wetlands protection panel toothless for failing to stop mangroves destruction

NAVI MUMBAI: In a surprising move, one of the 20 members of the HC appointed wetlands grievance redressal committee, D Stalin, has formally apologized to the greens lobby trying to protect the mangroves at Panje in Uran. Stalin has openly stated that the wetlands panel has almost become "toothless" since most of their orders and directions to protect and preserve wetlands go unheeded on ground zero, resulting in brazen hacking of more mangroves, as is now observed at Panje. This, he added, is contempt of court.
"With the new Konkan division head, A B Misal, taking charge of the wetlands panel, I urge him to also question why the MCZMA (Maharashtra coastal zone management authority) has not attended a single meeting of the wetlands committee in last four years, despite clear court directives. However, MCZMA did recently discuss the proposal to construct a 270 metre long wall at Panje to block tidal water. I have already argued that this proposed wall is unnecessary because the local Panje village is 14 metres above on a hillock, and hence there is no danger of flooding,'' said Stalin.
"As a member of the Wetlands Grievance Redressal Committee, I apologize for the miserable failure on the ground to protect Panje wetland. All directions given by the committee to Cidco, JNPT, local administration have been flouted time and again. We had directed that notice boards must be put up on sites which witness dumping or construction which indicate the details of the project being undertaken. However, nothing has happened for over a year, while rampant dumping of debris on wetlands, destruction of mangroves, violation of high court orders, CRZ rules continues brazenly,'' stated Stalin.
The green activists said that it is about time that the wetlands protection panel takes a hard relook at the state of affairs, in order to focus on their top priority; that is to protect the CRZ areas and mangroves. "The mangroves have already been declared as `protected forests' by the high court. Hence, we too feel that stern action on the ground by the HC appointed wetlands panel can have desired results. I have personally also spoken to the Konkan division head, Misal, who has assured that he will ensure that the preservation of wetlands is effectively done," said the director of NGO NatConnect Foundation, B N Kumar.
Kumar added that they have also received a response from the state chief minister's office informing that the secretary of forest department will also be probing the recent hacking of mangroves at Panje.
Navi Mumbai based lawyer and activist, Siddh Vidya, said: "If the state government continues to allow such illegal destruction of wetlands to take place, then we will be left with no other option but to file contempt of court proceedings and take to task all the departments and agencies concerned.'' Environmentalist Debi Goenka of Conservation Action Trust (CAT), said: ``It is rather shocking that several healthy mangroves at the Panje wetlands have been on a daily basis since last week, but no one has been arrested. Panje is a bird rich region, but if the wetland is destroyed then the avian biodiversity will also vanish forever. I feel that powerful vested interests are trying to reclaim Panje.''