Latest news with #NatConnectFoundation
Time of India
4 days ago
- Health
- Time of India
NGT seeks state response on quarrying near Tata cancer hospital in Kharghar
Navi Mumbai: The principal bench of the National Green Tribunal (NGT) took suo motu notice of media reports regarding illegal quarrying behind Tata cancer hospital in Kharghar, Navi Mumbai, and served notices to the concerned state govt agencies to respond to the alleged violations. The news raises "substantial issues" relating to compliance with environmental norms and implementation of the provisions of scheduled enactments, the bench comprising chairperson Justice Prakash Shrivastava, expert members Dr A Senthil Vel and Dr Afroz Ahmad, stated during the hearing. The principal bench based in New Delhi transferred the case to the tribunal's western zonal bench in Pune and listed it for the next hearing on Sept 17. The principal bench observed that the news items further state activists have questioned how the authorities could allow such blasting in the hills, especially when it leads to dangerous dust clouds spreading into the Tata hospital premises and also into nearby residential areas. The reports were based on the response received by environment watchdog NatConnect Foundation via the Right to Information (RTI) Act from the Raigad district administration that no permissions were issued for the quarry. The principal bench directed the Raigad district collector, Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, the state directorate of geology and mining, and Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) to file their response affidavits before the western zonal bench at least one week before the next hearing. You Can Also Check: Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai NatConnect Foundation director B N Kumar expressed his gratitude to the NGT for taking up the case. He expressed hope that accountability would be fixed for not checking the violation. "The quarrying must stop as it plays with the lives of cancer patients who already suffer from very low immunity. Moreover, the dust is the biggest enemy of the medical equipment that costs crores of rupees," Kumar said. "Experts have warned that the continuous quarrying has loosened the soil in the surrounding hills, increasing the chances of landslides in the area," the NGT noted. According to NGT, the news reports said the quarry could also pose a serious threat to both the tunnel construction and the safety of nearby residents and institutions. Jyoti Nadkarni, convenor of Kharghar Hill and Wetland Forum, welcoming NGT proceedings, said, "The RTI response is part of the official records of the district administration which should have checked the indiscriminate quarrying on for several months now."
Time of India
18-07-2025
- General
- Time of India
Plan for 100 cement plants on Parsik Hill to be examined by forest department, ETInfra
Advt The Union Forest Protection Division (FPD) has directed the state forest department to investigate environmentalists' objections over proposals for approximately 100 ready-mix concrete (RMC) plants at former quarry locations in Parsik Hill, Navi Mumbai. NatConnect Foundation approached the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change and Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, urging rejection of these proposals and cessation of forest area violations According to NatConnect director B N Kumar , Navi Mumbai's expansion, particularly around Parsik Hill's former MIDC industrial zones, is transforming into substantial residential and commercial developments, including tall buildings and IT facilities. The city's Air Quality Index already exceeds WHO standards, and Kumar emphasised that establishing ready-mix cement plants would worsen conditions in this urbanising FPD instructed the principal chief conservator of forests to evaluate the situation and implement appropriate measures according to current regulations, requesting prompt communication of action taken. Quarrying activities over more than 260 hectares were earlier halted following a National Green Tribunal ruling in September 2017 requiring environmental clearance . Previous attempts to resume quarrying were blocked by the State Environmental Impact Assessment Authority after protests from environmental has expressed serious concerns over the RMC proposals, warning of potential air and noise pollution. The forest department had earlier permitted use of 138.07 hectares in Parsik Hill for minor minerals extraction in 2006.
Deccan Herald
13-07-2025
- General
- Deccan Herald
BMC rolls out Rs 71 crore Powai Lake clean-up plan
Members of BMC-appointed Advanced Locality Management committee and NatConnect Foundation have launched a joint campaign focusing attention on the deterioration of Powai lake due to the direct inflow of untreated 18-million-litres-a-day.
Deccan Herald
24-06-2025
- Science
- Deccan Herald
Environmentalists challenge CIDCO's stance on wetlands in Navi Mumbai
NatConnect Foundation has come out with fresh evidence to prove that Lotus Lake has been listed under the National Wetland Atlas prepared based on the Space Application Centre survey.
Time of India
22-05-2025
- Health
- Time of India
Greens urge CM to halt quarrying at K'ghar Hills
Navi Mumbai: Several environmental organisations and activists have expressed grave concerns regarding quarrying operations at Kharghar Hills, located behind Tata Cancer Hospital and adjacent to the upcoming Kharghar-Turbhe tunnel project. NatConnect Foundation and Kharghar Hill and Wetland Forum have written to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, challenging the authorisation of hill blasting that produces harmful dust clouds affecting the Tata Hospital premises and residential areas from Sectors 30 to 35, extending to the developing Taloja residential area. Despite years of complaints, the issue remained unad-dressed. When contacted, pollution control authorities said they are implementing measures to deal with the situation. Responding to the complaints, Fadnavis has directed Raigad district collector to probe into the issue. B N Kumar, NatConnect director, emphasised concerns about dust affecting sensitive cancer treatment equipment. "It is unimaginable to have dust particles in the air when cancer patients are treated here," Kumar added. Although Tata Hospital officials' previous complaints resulted in a brief suspension, Jyoti Nadkarni, convenor of Kharghar Hill and Wetland Forum, said intensive blasting recommenced. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Scalable retail: Video analytics firm enables more traffic thanks to robust computing power - Google Cloud: Future of Infrastructure CIO | Google Cloud, AMD Undo "Sometimes the hills become invisible due to the heavy dust clouds," she said, pointing out that a gram panchayat school is located close to the hills. The quarrying locations are near Pandavkada waterfalls, a forest department eco-tourism project. Nadkarni said the ongoing Kharghar-Turbhe link road tunnel construction could face risks from continued quarrying. Environmental groups cited previous landslides at Irshlawadi and Parsik Hills to demonstrate quarrying dangers. They also noted National Green Tribunal requirements for environmental clearance and questioned Kharghar quarries' authorisation. Kumar advocated thorough environmental impact assessments before allowing such activities. The activists also referenced recent Himalayan landslides caused by road construction blasting as a warning, calling for immediate stoppage of Kharghar quarrying. A resident, Suraj Srinivasan, said, "Apart from blasting, poor visibility in the morning hours has been a nightmare for us. Pollution has become the flash point in this node which has a huge population."
