FCC

Ratnagiri's coastal authority approves Revas-Reddi hwy expansion

2023-08-11

The Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA) has approved the expansion of a significant section of the Revas-Reddi Coastal Highway (MSH-4) from two lanes to four.

The clearance for Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) has been granted for Package II in Ratnagiri, which is one of the four packages. This segment begins at Bankot and ends at Jaigad near the Jindal Thermal Power plant, passing through Kelshi, Dapoli, Guhagar, and Vijaygad. The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is responsible for carrying out this expansion.

The MCZMA stated that there is currently no continuous road along the coastline from the Maharashtra border to the Goa border. The MSH-4 coastline road is available in segments due to the presence of long creeks. This segmentation imposes restrictions on road users and tourists when planning their trips. Therefore, the MCZMA cleared the project, noting the need to improve the existing MSH-4 by constructing creek bridges along the entire Maharashtra coastline as a priority. This improvement is aimed at overcoming difficulties and boosting the tourism industry. The project will also pass close to multiple turtle nesting grounds.

The MSRDC provided documents indicating that in Ratnagiri, the Kelshi beach turtle nesting site is situated 50 meters away from the proposed project. The Velas nesting site and Anjarle nesting sites are 130 and 210 metres away from the project, respectively. In Dabhol, the proposed alignment passes over the turtle nesting site. The turtle nesting site at this location spans along the creek where a bridge is planned. The distance between two pillars of the bridge is set at 150 metres to ensure that the turtle nesting site remains undisturbed.

The MCZMA observed that there is no impact on the turtle nesting sites at Kelshi, Velas, and Anjarle. However, at Dabhol, the bridge passes through a turtle nesting site. As a result, the MCZMA mandated that construction work should not take place during the turtle nesting season, which occurs between October and March.

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