{"id":60129858,"date":"2026-04-23T18:40:20","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T17:40:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/?p=60129858"},"modified":"2026-05-01T10:33:53","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T09:33:53","slug":"mumbai-fishers-raise-alarm-over-plight-of-45000-mangroves","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dialogue.earth\/en\/nature\/mumbai-fishers-raise-alarm-over-plight-of-45000-mangroves\/","title":{"rendered":"Mumbai fishers raise alarm over plight of 45,000+ mangroves"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Just before dawn, small fishing boats sail into the creeks dotting Mumbai\u2019s coastline. By mid-morning, the catch will be sorted, packed and delivered to the city\u2019s many markets. Living along the coast of this Indian megacity, the Indigenous Koli fishing community has followed the same routine for generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Along these creeks, mangrove forests stand firm in the mudflats. Forming the city\u2019s first line of defence against floods, they break the force of tides, hold the shoreline in place, sequester carbon and shelter the fish that sustain these waters. In local Marathi dialects, mangroves are known as kaandalvan, teewar <\/em>and khaarphuti<\/em>. For fishers, they are the foundation of daily survival.

But a new 26 km coastal road planned between the upscale Versova neighbourhood and the suburbs of Bhayandar threatens these ecosystems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"water<\/div>
These mangroves are the first line of defence against floods in Mumbai, but thousands of them will be removed during construction (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth) \u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Mangrove<\/div>
Mangrove roots and their muddy soils shelter coastal wildlife. These nurseries sustain the livelihoods of many fishers in the area (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI earn around 1,500-2,000 rupees (USD 16-21.50) a day. We fish 365 days,\u201d says Sanjay Bhandari. The 50-year-old fisher works in Charkop, a Mumbai municipality the road will pass through. \u201cIf this coastal road comes, my income will go to zero.\u201d          <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In March, India\u2019s supreme court declined to overturn a ruling by the high court in Mumbai that permitted<\/a> the removal of around 46,000 mangrove trees. The city\u2019s planning authority, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), will be undertaking<\/a> the work. The road is expected to be completed in 2029.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The supreme court ruled the road would \u201cbenefit the general public\u201d by easing congestion on several major thoroughfares, as well as reducing travel times and fuel consumption for Mumbai residents.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But for fishing communities on the city\u2019s outskirts that depend on the mangroves, their immediate reality has already begun changing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"two<\/div>
Fishers Manohar Bhandari (left) and Sanjay Bhandari say the construction has already impacted the catch in the coastal village of Charkop, fomenting livelihood fears (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)\u00a0\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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\"Women<\/div>
Women selling fish and crabs in Versova, one of the neighbourhoods that will be affected by the new road\u00a0(Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth) \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Within a week of the supreme court\u2019s decision, dozens of fishers from Versova to Charkop told Dialogue Earth they were seeing lower catches. They also claimed of being denied access to fishing areas. The BMC\u2019s mangrove felling<\/a> and foundational work has only just begun, but these fishers are already facing uncertainty over their livelihoods.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Manohar Bhandari, a fisher in Charkop, where the felling has begun, explains why catches are already declining: \u201cThe piling and constant hammering have scared away the fish. The fish understands changes in nature before humans do.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fishers always last to know<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The proposed road is planned as a continuation of the existing Mumbai coastal road, and as an extension of the coastal corridor connecting to Bhayandar in the north.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to the BMC, around 55% of the coastal road will be built on stilts, with some sections passing through tunnels.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The road is expected to pass through key fishing areas for several coastal villages including Charkop, Malvani, Gorai, Aksa, Manori and Marve. According to the most recent data<\/a>, tens of thousands of fisherfolk live along Mumbai\u2019s central and suburban coastlines. Fishers fear the project will restrict access to creeks and traditional routes that have been used for generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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(Data source: BMC \/ Map: Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

In areas like Charkop and Gorai, located a few kilometres apart, mangroves stretch deep into the creeks. The air is thick with the sounds of birds and crabs. They move through the mudflats and tangled roots, exposed as the tide recedes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Several fishers in Charkop, including Manohar and Sanjay Bhandari, say they first learned about the mangrove felling on social media, primarily through the citizens\u2019 group Save Mumbai Mangroves<\/a>. The group has been collecting geotagged footage<\/a> of mangroves being felled along the route. Barricades have been installed around the mangroves, so members film from above in their apartment buildings.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The BMC\u2019s submission to the high court in Mumbai reveals around 60,000 mangrove trees are within the project\u2019s zone of influence, and therefore may be \u201caffected\/destroyed\u201d. It states around 9,000 trees are to be destroyed in the areas occupied by the bridge and road construction. Nearly 37,000 mangroves in a 68-hectare zone will be \u201ctemporarily diverted and affected\u201d during construction, before being subject to a detailed restoration plan. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The court has directed another 36,925 mangroves to be planted on land that will become available following construction. This will be carried out by the Mangrove Cell of the state of Maharashtra, a government unit dedicated to mangrove protection, conservation and management.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Barricade<\/div>
Barricades at Turzon Point in Charkop installed by Mumbai\u2019s planning authority, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation; it is difficult for the public to observe the tree felling (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Fishers also allege that mangrove trees are being felled late at night, only to be discovered when they fish near the creeks in the daytime. They question the BMC\u2019s intent: \u201cWhy hide it?\u201d asks Manohar. \u201cWhy not let us see?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dheeraj Bhandari, president of the local Charkop Koliwada Society fishing association, says fishing communities and villagers are often the last to be informed of infrastructure projects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

According to Stalin Dayanand, director of the Mumbai environmental group Vanashakti<\/a>, fishing communities in the project sites were not even informed while the first phase was being planned. \u201cThey only found out when their jetties were taken over, access was restricted, and their boats were removed,\u201d he claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cInforming them is what an ethical government should do,\u201d says Stalin. \u201c[The fishing communities] always have to fight back, and then some settlement is reached.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Dialogue Earth has contacted the Mangrove Cell of Maharashtra but not received a response. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Fisherfolk associations from the Koli fishing village of Worli Koliwada petitioned the high court of Mumbai in 2019. They challenged<\/a> aspects of the coastal road project, and alleged a lack of consultation and adequate surveys when assessing potential impacts on fishers\u2019 livelihoods and marine life. Though the high court ordered<\/a> a halt to the work, the supreme court eventually allowed<\/a> the project to continue, with certain restrictions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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In Malvani village, boundary walls are being built around mangrove areas that restrict access to fishing grounds. Koli fishers protested this in early April, alleging this construction had commenced without prior consultation (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The Coastal Regulation Zone framework, established under the Environment Protection Act, regulates development along India\u2019s coasts. Under this framework<\/a>, state governments are required to form district-level committees to enforce it and monitor projects. The committees must include at least three representatives of local traditional coastal communities, including fisherfolk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHowever, in Maharashtra state government projects, representation in actual decision-making processes is often missing,\u201d Stalin claims.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He adds that Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers are granted<\/a> statutory rights under the 2006 Forest Rights Act. But fishing communities do not have equivalent comprehensive and national rights-based legislation. \u201cThey should be treated on par with tribal communities, because they are Indigenous people who depend on the land and the water for their livelihood,\u201d Stalin says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Malvani village is located in the central stretch of the project. In early April, around 30 members of the Koli community gathered near their fishing grounds here, protesting the construction of a boundary wall enclosing the site. Pradeep Koli, a fisher, alleges the work began without residents being consulted.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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\"closeup<\/div>
Pradeep Koli (front) and other members of the Koli community gather in Malvani to protest the road project. They allege a lack of consultation for impacted fishing communities (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Construction of a boundary wall enclosing Malvani\u2019s construction site. Its traditional fishing grounds are no longer accessible (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

Villagers claimed the construction work meant access to traditional fishing grounds was being restricted. \u201cThis land belongs to us. We were never asked,\u201d says Koli. \u201cWe have come here to protect our existence, to save our lifeline.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Livelihoods and cultural ties at stake<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Mangrove systems, such as those the road is expected to cut through, serve as rich breeding grounds<\/a> for marine life. During high tide, fish and crabs spawn in the shallow, nutrient-rich waters. Fishers tell Dialogue Earth they sustain local fisheries that have been depended on for generations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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A pair of mud crabs in the dappled sunlight created by Gorai\u2019s mangroves. This site, as with others along the Marve coastline, is rich in biodiversity (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf you cut down these mangroves and damage these mudflats, how will they ever grow back?\u201d asks Dheeraj of the Charkop Koliwada Society. \u201cThe plan must be changed. We cannot destroy natural resources.\u201d Fishers and campaigners consulted by Dialogue Earth say the loss of mangroves is not just ecological or economic but deeply cultural.

Mangroves have long been part of the communities\u2019 everyday life. Their wood and branches have traditionally been used to build homes. The mangrove ecosystems have shaped daily life, knowledge systems and traditions, notes Stalin, who has been studying the ecology of Mumbai.

Fishing communities have historically used mangroves sustainably and long played a role in protecting them in and around Mumbai, Stalin says: \u201cEven for firewood, they would take fallen branches. Cutting mangrove trees is not part of their practice.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Fishing<\/div>
Fishing boats moored in the mangrove forest at Gorai. Fishing communities have historically used mangroves sustainably, and long played a role in protecting them (Image: Shalinee Kumari \/ Dialogue Earth)<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

Mohit Ramle, Mumbai president of the All Koli Community and Culture Preservation Association, has been raising awareness<\/a> about mangroves and their key role in Koli life using social media.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Standing near Versova Beach, he tells Dialogue Earth how mangrove resources were used in folk medicine for snake bites and insect bites: \u201cLeaves and bark helped treat wounds. Some leaves, when crushed, release a smell that repels mosquitoes. This knowledge comes from our ancestors.\u201d <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mangroves have always held importance in Koli traditions, too. This is reflected in oral traditions and folk songs passed down through generations. These include stories of the sea, nature and spirits believed to inhabit these landscapes, Ramle notes, such as the goddess Holika.<\/p>\n\n\n\n