Supreme Court to hear plea on Mumbai CRZ after Diwali break

New Delhi: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that after Diwali vacation, it will hear a plea challenging the Bombay High Court order that quashed the Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) approval for the Rs 14,000 crore coastal road project in Mumbai.

A bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi said the matter will be heard by a bench headed by Justice S.A. Bobde.

Representing Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta requested the court to pass an interim order enabling resumption of the stalled coastal road project in Mumbai, but the bench refused to stay the Bombay High Court order.

The Bombay High Court had stopped work on the coastal road project, citing "a serious lacuna in the decision-making process" and "lack of proper scientific study", insisting on environmental clearance for the project under an Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) notification. It also raised the issue of corals despite their "miniscule presence" at Haji Ali and Worli.

The High Court had also observed that the project also required approvals under the Wildlife Protection Act, 1972, though the project has already obtained CRZ clearance from the Environment and Forests Ministry.

The project is being constructed by Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai, which has engaged private players such as Larsen & Toubro.