The Bombay High Court has directed forest-compliant repairs for internal roads in Aarey Milk Colony while rejecting a petition from a Royal Palms resident seeking to transfer responsibility to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
The court emphasized that repairs in forest areas must comply with Forest Laws, and those in the Ecologically Sensitive Zone (ESZ) must adhere to ESZ Rules. It also highlighted that Aarey's internal roads fall within the ESZ, and some sections must be closed to public use.
A bench led by Justices Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Arif S. Doctor noted that of the 52 km of internal roads in Aarey, 7 km are under the BMC's jurisdiction. The remaining 45 km includes an 11.98 km stretch in reserved forest areas requiring immediate priority repairs, while another 17.72 km section needs less extensive work.
The court ordered the permanent closure of an 8.22 km stretch due to the availability of alternate routes. This closure must be implemented within 10 days. The court further mentioned that the Department of Agriculture, Animal Husbandry, Dairy, and Fisheries Development of the Maharashtra government will undertake the repairs, which have been allocated a budget of Rs. 48.41 crore.
The court's decision comes after a committee formed to investigate the issue concurred with the contentions raised by the environmental NGO Vanashakti. The ESZ committee confirmed the existence of an alternate official road for Royal Palms residents and clarified that Aarey roads cannot be designated as their official access route. The court consequently rejected the request from Royal Palms residents to transfer control of the Aarey roads to the BMC.
Vanashakti had filed an intervention plea opposing the petition submitted by Binod Agarwal, a resident of Royal Palms, who had urged the BMC to take over repairs of the internal roads. Vanashakti advocated for repairs and reconstruction within Aarey's forest and ESZ areas but emphasized the importance of minimizing environmental impact during the process.
Agarwal's petition had highlighted the poor condition of the roads, particularly during the monsoon season, and requested repairs to be undertaken by the BMC. The petition stated that the roads had been in a "deplorable state for the past three years" and that no action had been taken to address the issue.