Tree-felling for Metro 9 car depot in Dongri on hold after protests

Permission for felling 1,406 trees was issued on June 5; residents vow to intensify stir if concerns not allayed

- Ateeq Shaikh and Shreya Jachak

MUMBAI: The process of felling 1,406 trees for the proposed Metro-9 car depot at Dongri in Bhayander West has been put on hold within a fortnight of permission being granted for the same owing to stiff resistance among residents of the area.

A petition opposing the axing of over 12,000 trees for the car depot has garnered over 21,000 signatures and residents of the Uttan-Dongri area have met a slew of officials over the past two weeks, demanding the depot be shifted to an alternative location where such large-scale tree-felling would not be needed.

On Sunday, over 500 people participated in a public meeting at St Joseph High School in Uttan where they vowed to intensify the stir in case efforts are made to restart tree-felling without allaying their concerns.

The Metro 9 corridor will connect Dahisar East with Dongri via Bhayandar. Although work on the corridor was started over a decade ago, the proposed car depot was shifted in 2023 from a location near the Rai, Murdha and Morva villages owing to resistance against land acquisition.