Mumbai: The residents of Breach Candy and Nepean Sea Road have started an online petition opposing the recent approval of advertising hoardings along the city’s Coastal Road by the Maharashtra Coastal Zone Management Authority (MCZMA). They said this decision not only compromises the visual appeal of this newly-opened infrastructure but also violates principles of good governance, environmental laws, and public safety. They listed six key concerns in their petition, including light pollution, loss of aesthetic value, and setting a dangerous precedent. Within minutes of the petition being started, it gained 845 supporters on Wednesday.
The MCZMA recently cleared the BMC’s proposed hoardings next to open spaces along the coastal road. The advertisement hoardings are proposed near Tata Garden, Amazons Garden, and Lala Lajpatrai Garden in South Mumbai. According to MCZMA, the area falls under Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ 2), and the hoardings can come up only on the landward side of the road or existing structures. The onus will be on the BMC to ensure norms aren’t violated.
The residents’ petition, started by Rajesh Dahiya, who is a chairman of a housing society in Breach Candy and also a member of the Breach Candy Residents’ Forum, states that it is an open letter to chief minister Devendra Fadnavis and minister Mangal Prabhat Lodha. Lodha is also the MLA from the area. “As citizens of Mumbai, we have immense pride in our city’s development. However, this pride is deeply tied to our collective well-being and the thoughtful preservation of our city’s heritage and natural beauty. As custodians of public trust, we hope that you will take decisive action to reverse this decision and ensure that the Coastal Road remains a legacy of innovation and sustainability, not an avenue for visual and ecological degradation,” states the petition.
As part of the residents’ collective appeal, they have called for immediate reconsideration of the proposal by the authorities, a public consultation, and allowing the Coastal Road to remain a symbol of Mumbai’s progress and pride, not a billboard-laden stretch of commercialism.