Environmental activists have taken serious action against the construction of a mechanical gate in the Godavari River bed, a project initiated by the Smart City administration to control the river's flow during floods. The project aims to manage flooding during the monsoon months of July and August, when excessive water discharge from the Gangapur Dam causes significant flooding in the Ramkund and Gangaghat areas. This flooding disrupts daily activities and damages property in these marketplace areas. To address this, the Smart City initiative proposed constructing a mechanical gate just below the Holkar Bridge.
However, environmentalists are opposing the project, arguing that it involves extensive concrete work in the river bed, which violates a High Court judgment from December 2019 that prohibits concrete work in the river bed. Despite this ruling, the Smart City administration has started constructing the mechanical gate using concrete below the Holkar Bridge. Nishikant Pagare, president of the Godavari Gatarikarn Virodhi Manch, has sent a letter to the divisional commissioner’s office demanding an immediate halt to the project. "The Smart City administration has completely violated the High Court's decision. We have sent them a legal notice. They have already broken a huge ancient stone under the bridge, and around 60 to 70 kilograms of concrete have been used in the river bed so far. The Smart City officials have not clearly explained the exact use of this mechanical gate, nor could they explain how it will help," Pagare said.
The issue of concreting the Godavari River has been ongoing since 2012. Initially, the Nashik Municipal Corporation (NMC) and later the Smart City administration used significant amounts of concrete in the river bed under the guise of beautifying the river. Environmentalists have raised concerns about this concretization, which they argue affects the river's natural flow. The court's 2018 judgment explicitly prohibited any construction work, whether temporary or permanent, within the river basin’s blue line. "When we approached the High Court with our complaints, the court mandated that the NMC and Smart City administration should hold a joint meeting with environmentalists every month regarding the work. However, this meeting has not occurred in the last 2-3 months, which the NMC administration claims is due to election code of conduct rules," Pagare added.A legal notice had been issued to the Smart City administration before commencing the work, and the administration was expected to provide a clarification, which is still pending. The ongoing conflict highlights the tension between developmental projects and environmental conservation. Activists are determined to preserve the natural state of the Godavari River, adhering to legal mandates and protecting the environment from potentially harmful construction practices.