SC rejects plea against construction of new passenger jetty at Gateway of India

The construction of a new passenger jetty and terminal at the iconic Gateway of India in south Mumbai would continue as the Supreme Court on Monday dismissed a plea against the Bombay High Court verdict allowing the projectThe high court on July 15 dismissed three petitions against the construction of the Rs 229 crore passenger jetty and terminal facility proposed by the Maharashtra Maritime Board MMB near the Gateway of IndiaA bench comprising Chief Justice B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran dismissed the appeal filed by one Laura D Souza against the high court verdict saying the issue fell under the policy domain of the governmentThe bench said the issues relating to the construction of a new passenger jetty and terminal cannot be decided only on the basis of the grievances of those living in and around The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel in south Mumbais Colaba areaIt cannot be looked only from the angle of the people who are residing in those buildings Mr Sanjay Hegde had earlier argued that it is an issue of Aamchi Mumbai v Tyanchi Mumbai I said Aamchi Mumbai does not stay in that area There in Goregaon Dombivli etc the CJI said after dismissing the pleaAn advocate however took exception to the notion that Colaba residents were eliteThe CJI agreed to the submission saying he was aware about the area which also housed several impoverished peopleSenior advocate C U Singh appearing for D Souza challenged the high court verdict and said the prospective predicament of the people living in the area due to traffic congestion and difficulties hadnt been consideredThis is a massive project which is not suitable as per the area being built on This will dwarf the entire area it is massive another lawyer saidSolicitor General Tushar Mehta appearing for the Maharashtra authorities opposed the submissions and said there was a difference between a port and a jettyHe said a conscious decision was taken keeping in mind the welfare of the entire city and the facility would lessen the travel time between south Mumbai to Navi Mumbai Mandwa and AlibaughMehta said the socalled inconvenience of a few locals should not come in the way of such an important project calling it well thought ofThe project in the sea approximately measuring 15 acre will be nearly 280 metre from the Gateway of India located near the Radio Club in south MumbaiAccording to the plea the project plan involves parking of 150 cars VIP loungeswaiting areas an amphitheatre and ticket countersadministrative areas along with a huge tennis racquetshaped jetty on stilts in the seaWhile the high court upheld the states decision to construct the jetty and terminal the amphitheatre was directed to only act as a sitting area for passengers not a place of entertainmentSimilarly a proposed restaurant or cafe should be used only to provide water and packed food to passengers and not as a dining facility the high court ruledThe Maharashtra Maritime Board was accordingly directed to ensure the discontinuance of the existing four jetties meant for public use in a phased manner as directed by the Indian Navy once the project was completedThe project meets the principle of sustainable development where the proposed development is being carried out with minimum damage to the environment the high court saidWhile observing the governments policy decision did not suffer from vice of arbitrariness irrationality and nonapplication of mind the high court said the pursuit of development was not an affront to the environment when it came to sustainability guarded by regulations and reasonThe pleas before the high court claimed the construction near the Gateway of India would cause harm to the environmentIt came on record that there were five operational jetties in use for almost a century and one of them was exclusively used by the Bhabha Atomic Research CentreAccording to the Maharashtra Maritime Board around 35 lakh passengers travel each year using the four jetties making it inadequateFerries from the Gateway of India take passengers from south Mumbai to Alibaug in neighbouring Raigad district