The state government has sought to remove the reservation of a garden and zoo for a 1,375 sq m (14,800 sq ft) property adjacent to Byculla zoo & convert it into a residential zone in response to mounting worries about the city losing open spaces.
According to Chaitanya Marpakwar, the BMC accepted the change in December as per a mandate from the state’s urban development division (UDD), and its development plan (DP) section has requested public comments on the planned change.
The state asserted that neither a garden nor a zoo existed there and that BMC was not purchasing the site to expand the zoo. According to officials, the site in Mazgaon Division in DP-2034 was originally set aside for a garden/park and zoo, however, the government later announced the reserve as a garden and zoo.
The Save Rani Bagh Botanical Garden Foundation trustee Hutokshi Rustomfram and activist Zoru Bhathena both stated that they would object, and they would “study the idea and then file our objections accordingly.”
Zoru Bhathena, an activist, urged for action to conserve green areas rather than have them destroyed in opposition to the state’s proposal to remove the protection of a garden & zoo for a 1,375 sq m land close to the city zoo and turn it into a housing area.
The plot is not part of the BMC’s acquisition process, so UDD was instructed in a letter dated November 16, 2022, to follow the proper procedures for an adjustment under section 37(1) of the Maharashtra Region & Town Planning (MRTP) Act, 1966, to delete the reservation of the garden and zoo and include the said plot in a residential zone. The BMC was notified that there is no existing garden or zoo (an extension of Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan) on the property.
According to officials, Iqbal Singh Chahal’s administrator gave his approval to the project in December 2022 through a decision to change the plot’s reservation and request comments and objections from the public.
The Save Rani Bagh Botanical Garden Foundation trustee Hutokshi Rustomfram stated they will review the idea. We’ll read the public notice, consult with UDD, and then file our complaints appropriately, said Rustomfram.
The BMC has approved a petition to amend the official name of the gardens & zoo to include the term “vanaspati” or “botanical” in honour of Veermata Jijabai Bhosale Udyan and Zoo, also known as Rani Baug, which celebrates its 160th anniversary this year.
