Just before dawn, small fishing boats sail into the creeks dotting Mumbai’s coastline. By mid-morning, the catch will be sorted, packed and delivered to the city’s many markets. Living along the coast of this Indian megacity, the Indigenous Koli fishing community has followed the same routine for generations.
Along these creeks, mangrove forests stand firm in the mudflats. Forming the city’s first line of defence against floods, they break the force of tides, hold the shoreline in place, sequester carbon and shelter the fish that sustain these waters. In local Marathi dialects, mangroves are known as kaandalvan, teewar and khaarphuti . For fishers, they are the foundation of daily survival.
But a new 26 km coastal road planned between the upscale Versova neighbourhood and the suburbs of Bhayandar threatens these ecosystems. These mangroves are the first line of defence against floods in Mumbai, but thousands of them will be removed during construction (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Mangrove roots and their muddy soils shelter coastal wildlife. These nurseries sustain the livelihoods of many fishers in the area (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) “I earn around 1,500-2,000 rupees (USD 16-21.50) a day. We fish 365 days,” says Sanjay Bhandari. The 50-year-old fisher works in Charkop, a Mumbai municipality the road will pass through. “If this coastal road comes, my income will go to zero.” In March, India’s supreme court declined to overturn a ruling by the high court in Mumbai that permitted the removal of around 46,000 mangrove trees. The city’s planning authority, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), will be undertaking the work. The road is expected to be completed in 2029.
The supreme court ruled the road would “benefit the general public” by easing congestion on several major thoroughfares, as well as reducing travel times and fuel consumption for Mumbai residents.
But for fishing communities on the city’s outskirts that depend on the mangroves, their immediate reality has already begun changing. Fishers Manohar Bhandari (left) and Sanjay Bhandari say the construction has already impacted the catch in the coastal village of Charkop, fomenting livelihood fears (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Women selling fish and crabs in Versova, one of the neighbourhoods that will be affected by the new road (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Within a week of the supreme court’s decision, dozens of fishers from Versova to Charkop told Dialogue Earth they were seeing lower catches. They also claimed of being denied access to fishing areas. The BMC’s mangrove felling and foundational work has only just begun, but these fishers are already facing uncertainty over their livelihoods.
Manohar Bhandari, a fisher in Charkop, where the felling has begun, explains why catches are already declining: “The piling and constant hammering have scared away the fish. The fish understands changes in nature before humans do.”
Fishers always last to know
The proposed road is planned as a continuation of the existing Mumbai coastal road, and as an extension of the coastal corridor connecting to Bhayandar in the north.
According to the BMC, around 55% of the coastal road will be built on stilts, with some sections passing through tunnels.
The road is expected to pass through key fishing areas for several coastal villages including Charkop, Malvani, Gorai, Aksa, Manori and Marve. According to the most recent data , tens of thousands of fisherfolk live along Mumbai’s central and suburban coastlines. Fishers fear the project will restrict access to creeks and traditional routes that have been used for generations. (Data source: BMC / Map: Dialogue Earth) In areas like Charkop and Gorai, located a few kilometres apart, mangroves stretch deep into the creeks. The air is thick with the sounds of birds and crabs. They move through the mudflats and tangled roots, exposed as the tide recedes.
Several fishers in Charkop, including Manohar and Sanjay Bhandari, say they first learned about the mangrove felling on social media, primarily through the citizens’ group Save Mumbai Mangroves . The group has been collecting geotagged footage of mangroves being felled along the route. Barricades have been installed around the mangroves, so members film from above in their apartment buildings.
The BMC’s submission to the high court in Mumbai reveals around 60,000 mangrove trees are within the project’s zone of influence, and therefore may be “affected/destroyed”. It states around 9,000 trees are to be destroyed in the areas occupied by the bridge and road construction. Nearly 37,000 mangroves in a 68-hectare zone will be “temporarily diverted and affected” during construction, before being subject to a detailed restoration plan. The court has directed another 36,925 mangroves to be planted on land that will become available following construction. This will be carried out by the Mangrove Cell of the state of Maharashtra, a government unit dedicated to mangrove protection, conservation and management. Barricades at Turzon Point in Charkop installed by Mumbai’s planning authority, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation; it is difficult for the public to observe the tree felling (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Fishers also allege that mangrove trees are being felled late at night, only to be discovered when they fish near the creeks in the daytime. They question the BMC’s intent: “Why hide it?” asks Manohar. “Why not let us see?”
Dheeraj Bhandari, president of the local Charkop Koliwada Society fishing association, says fishing communities and villagers are often the last to be informed of infrastructure projects.
According to Stalin Dayanand, director of the Mumbai environmental group Vanashakti , fishing communities in the project sites were not even informed while the first phase was being planned. “They only found out when their jetties were taken over, access was restricted, and their boats were removed,” he claims.
“Informing them is what an ethical government should do,” says Dayanand. “[The fishing communities] always have to fight back, and then some settlement is reached.”
Dialogue Earth has contacted the Mangrove Cell of Maharashtra but not received a response. Fisherfolk associations from the Koli fishing village of Worli Koliwada petitioned the high court of Mumbai in 2019. They challenged aspects of the coastal road project, and alleged a lack of consultation and adequate surveys when assessing potential impacts on fishers’ livelihoods and marine life. Though the high court ordered a halt to the work, the supreme court eventually allowed the project to continue, with certain restrictions. In Malvani village, boundary walls are being built around mangrove areas that restrict access to fishing grounds. Koli fishers protested this in early April, alleging this construction had commenced without prior consultation (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) The Coastal Regulation Zone framework, established under the Environment Protection Act, regulates development along India’s coasts. Under this framework , state governments are required to form district-level committees to enforce it and monitor projects. The committees must include at least three representatives of local traditional coastal communities, including fisherfolk.
“However, in Maharashtra state government projects, representation in actual decision-making processes is often missing,” Dayanand claims.
He adds that Scheduled Tribes and other traditional forest dwellers are granted statutory rights under the 2006 Forest Rights Act. But fishing communities do not have equivalent comprehensive and national rights-based legislation. “They should be treated on par with tribal communities, because they are Indigenous people who depend on the land and the water for their livelihood,” Dayanand says. Malvani village is located in the central stretch of the project. In early April, around 30 members of the Koli community gathered near their fishing grounds here, protesting the construction of a boundary wall enclosing the site. Pradeep Koli, a fisher, alleges the work began without residents being consulted. Pradeep Koli (front) and other members of the Koli community gather in Malvani to protest the road project. They allege a lack of consultation for impacted fishing communities (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Construction of a boundary wall enclosing Malvani’s construction site. Its traditional fishing grounds are no longer accessible (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Villagers claimed the construction work meant access to traditional fishing grounds was being restricted. “This land belongs to us. We were never asked,” says Koli. “We have come here to protect our existence, to save our lifeline.”
Livelihoods and cultural ties at stake
Mangrove systems, such as those the road is expected to cut through, serve as rich breeding grounds for marine life. During high tide, fish and crabs spawn in the shallow, nutrient-rich waters. Fishers tell Dialogue Earth they sustain local fisheries that have been depended on for generations. A pair of mud crabs in the dappled sunlight created by Gorai’s mangroves. This site, as with others along the Marve coastline, is rich in biodiversity (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) “If you cut down these mangroves and damage these mudflats, how will they ever grow back?” asks Dheeraj of the Charkop Koliwada Society. “The plan must be changed. We cannot destroy natural resources.” Fishers and campaigners consulted by Dialogue Earth say the loss of mangroves is not just ecological or economic but deeply cultural.
Mangroves have long been part of the communities’ everyday life. Their wood and branches have traditionally been used to build homes. The mangrove ecosystems have shaped daily life, knowledge systems and traditions, notes Dayanand, who has been studying the ecology of Mumbai.
Fishing communities have historically used mangroves sustainably and long played a role in protecting them in and around Mumbai, Dayanand says: “Even for firewood, they would take fallen branches. Cutting mangrove trees is not part of their practice.” Fishing boats moored in the mangrove forest at Gorai. Fishing communities have historically used mangroves sustainably, and long played a role in protecting them (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Mohit Ramle, Mumbai president of the All Koli Community and Culture Preservation Association, has been raising awareness about mangroves and their key role in Koli life using social media.
Standing near Versova Beach, he tells Dialogue Earth how mangrove resources were used in folk medicine for snake bites and insect bites: “Leaves and bark helped treat wounds. Some leaves, when crushed, release a smell that repels mosquitoes. This knowledge comes from our ancestors.” Mangroves have always held importance in Koli traditions, too. This is reflected in oral traditions and folk songs passed down through generations. These include stories of the sea, nature and spirits believed to inhabit these landscapes, Ramle notes, such as the goddess Holika. Mohit Ramle, Mumbai president of the All Koli Community and Culture Preservation Association, sings a folk song about the sacred nature of the mangrove forests (Video: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth)
For the Kolis, who have long been nature worshippers, the disappearance of mangroves is not just environmental degradation – it is the erosion of memory, belief and belonging. ‘Mindset more dangerous than a tsunami’
Dozens of fishers Dialogue Earth spoke to say they have complained to the BMC, and have been actively participating in protests around the city. Dialogue Earth reached out to the BMC but has not received a response.
For Sanjay Bhandari, fishing is his only source of income. He wishes to support his daughter to become a cricketer – an expensive pursuit. He laments: “If fishing stops, how will [she] move forward?” Ramle believes development should be measured by the ability to live in peace with nature, not by concrete (Image: Shalinee Kumari / Dialogue Earth) Around him, others are asking similar questions. “We don’t know whose dream project this [road] is,” says Dheeraj. “What we do know is that it cuts through mangroves and will destroy the biodiversity here.”
For a city that has repeatedly withstood devastating floods , water levels rising further due to the loss of mangroves is a real worry, he notes: “If we cut down the mangroves, it will be worse for us.”
For Ramle, the issue runs deeper than a single project: “Concrete alone is not development; living in peace with nature is real development.”
What worries him more is how easily nature is dismissed: “This mindset is more dangerous than a tsunami. A tsunami comes once; this keeps destroying nature again and again.”
Ramle insists the community is not opposed to development. “Our fight is against unsustainable development.”
He thinks many in the fishing community are still unaware of the project itself. Among those who are aware, Ramle says, there is growing fatigue: “Our community is tired of protests and legal fights. People are fed up. They should be able to focus on their livelihoods instead.” This story was supported by Earth Journalism Network. The post Mumbai fishers raise alarm over plight of 45,000+ mangroves appeared first on Dialogue Earth .