Maharashtra government on September 2 decided to reserve 600-acre of Aarey land near the Sanjay Gandhi National Park (SGNP) in suburban Mumbai as a ‘forest’ and conserve the same. The decision was taken during a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray. CM Thackeray said, the forest would be the first example of a "huge jungle" being conserved at the centre of a megapolis, an official statement said. During the meeting, it was decided to apply Section 4 of the Indian Forest Act (IFA) to approximately 600 acres in Aarey land. Environment Minister Aaditya Thackeray, Forest Minister Sanjay Rathod, Urban Development Minister Eknath Shinde, Chief Secretary Sanjay Kumar and others were present for the meeting, the statement said. The chief minister instructed during the meeting to safeguard the rights of Adivasis’ (tribals) while the area is reserved as forest. In November 2019, Maharashtra CM announced the suspension of Mumbai Metro car-shed. In December 2019, the Supreme Court also extended its interim stay on the felling of trees in Mumbai's Aarey Colony. Notably, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd (MMRCL) authorities had chopped down 2,141 trees in the area in 2019. Watch the video to know more.
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