An RTI query by Mumbai Mirror has revealed that a crucial clearance required to begin constructing the proposed airport in Navi Mumbai has not been obtained from the forest department at Alibag, despite the fact that both the City Industrial Development Corporation (CIDCO) and the state government have claimed that all permissions are in place.
CIDCO and state officials said they plan to start pre-development work at the site, including diverting a river and reclaiming mangroves, by February 2016. 645 hectares of mangrove cover will be cleared, even though 250 hectares are of good quality, to make way for the airport's main premises. Alibag's forest department, which processed the proposal for the airport, had written to the state principal secretary (forest) on December 17, 2013 to assert that there needed to be compensatory afforestation to replant the mangroves.
CIDCO is currently in the final stages of awarding the contract for the work and the state has repeatedly claimed that they've obtained all required permissions. Four companies who fulfilled their initial criteria, which included a minimum net worth of Rs 2,375 crore and experience developing projects worth Rs 9,500 crore, have now qualified for the submission of request for proposal (RFP) for the new international airport. These include GMR Delhi, GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Ltd, Zurich with Hiranandani Developers, and MIA Infrastructure of France along with Tata Realty. The project cost, which was pegged at Rs 4,766 crore in 1998, has increased to Rs 15,000 crore. In all, 2,268 hectares are required for the airport.
14/12/15 Yogesh Naik & Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
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CIDCO and state officials said they plan to start pre-development work at the site, including diverting a river and reclaiming mangroves, by February 2016. 645 hectares of mangrove cover will be cleared, even though 250 hectares are of good quality, to make way for the airport's main premises. Alibag's forest department, which processed the proposal for the airport, had written to the state principal secretary (forest) on December 17, 2013 to assert that there needed to be compensatory afforestation to replant the mangroves.
CIDCO is currently in the final stages of awarding the contract for the work and the state has repeatedly claimed that they've obtained all required permissions. Four companies who fulfilled their initial criteria, which included a minimum net worth of Rs 2,375 crore and experience developing projects worth Rs 9,500 crore, have now qualified for the submission of request for proposal (RFP) for the new international airport. These include GMR Delhi, GVK-led Mumbai International Airport Ltd, Zurich with Hiranandani Developers, and MIA Infrastructure of France along with Tata Realty. The project cost, which was pegged at Rs 4,766 crore in 1998, has increased to Rs 15,000 crore. In all, 2,268 hectares are required for the airport.
14/12/15 Yogesh Naik & Aditya Anand/Mumbai Mirror
