Despite a decade passing since the scrapping of the River Regulation Zone (RRZ) in Maharashtra, there have been no significant efforts to protect riverbanks, even after a series of floods and flash floods have inundated various areas, environmentalists say. This information was revealed through the Right to Information (RTI) Act.
The RRZ policy was officially scrapped by a State Cabinet decision on January 20, 2015, as confirmed by details shared with the environment-focused NGO NatConnect Foundation under RTI. NatConnect’s director, B.N. Kumar, had filed an RTI application with the Environment and Climate Change Department, seeking information about the status of the river regulation policy and the measures taken to protect riverbanks and enforce the RRZ in the state.
The response, signed by Principal Information Officer Dr. Rohini Patil, merely confirmed the scrapping of the RRZ policy a decade ago. Kumar expressed frustration that no further details were provided regarding the steps taken to protect the floodplains.
The RRZ was designed to regulate construction along riverbanks, ensuring space for rivers to flow naturally in floodplains during times of excess water. Kumar criticized the authorities for failing to learn from the ongoing floods in areas such as Kalyan, Shil, Badlapur, and Chiplun, which were exacerbated by unchecked construction.
“Despite the devastation caused by construction along floodplains, planners have not taken any lessons,” Kumar lamented.
An RRZ functions similarly to the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ), which restricts construction in high-tide areas to protect nature, people, and properties. Nandakumar Pawar, director of another NGO, Sagar Shakti, expressed disappointment over the government’s continued neglect of river protection. “It is sad that the government continues to turn a blind eye to this, even in flood-prone riverfront properties,” he said.
Kumar emphasized the importance of allowing rivers to flow naturally without artificial constraints on floodplain areas, especially in light of scientific reports warning about rising sea levels that threaten to submerge coastal areas within the next 25 years. According to recent reports, even small towns and villages along the coast will be impacted by rising seas, with rivers meeting the sea at critical points, exacerbating the flooding risk.
“This is not rocket science,” Kumar stated. “Climate change is real, and rising sea temperatures contribute to what are known as ‘flying rivers’—concentrated evaporated water that leads to cloudbursts and flash floods, a phenomenon already affecting regions across the country.”
Activists are hopeful that the authorities will reconsider their stance and restore the RRZ policy before it is too late. “We’ve already lost a precious decade,” Pawar concluded.