Constructing wall is sheer waste of funds, say activists

Mumbai: Activists have alleged that in constructing concrete walls along Dahisar River in the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP), the state forest department is repeating the same mistake committed by the BMC. The civic body has constructed retaining walls along city rivers including Poisar, Dahisar and Oshiwara. Environmentalists have called it a sheer waste of funds as concretising affects the natural water flow and prevents groundwater percolation.

“When the BMC started construction of retaining walls along Mumbai’s rivers, we observed that they were even concretising the riverbeds. We approached the state government and they assured us that concretisation of rivers will be stopped. Now, the forest department is doing the same thing,” said Gopal Jhaveri, member, River March (NGO).  He added, “When you concretise the riverbed and sides, where will the rain water percolate? This is nothing but a sheer waste of public funds.”

But SGNP officials have claimed that unlike the BMC, the forest department will not carry out any construction on the riverbed of Dahisar River.