BMC goes the Bigg Boss way to watch over Mumbai's mangroves

In a firstofitskind initiative to prevent illegal activity in Mumbais ecosensitive zones the BMC has tied up with Indian Space Research Organisation ISRO to monitor these areas closely using satellite imagesThe programme will be facilitated by National Remote Sensing Centre NRSC a department of ISRO The NRSC which deals with the acquisition and processing of remotesensing satellite data will be sourcing the images through American company Digital Globe The project is likely to be launched next monthConfirming the development Additional Municipal Commissioner Idzes Kundan who is spearheading the project said It is crucial to keep an eye on encroachment and illegal activity in the mangroves The objective is to keep a vigil Instead of acting on a complaint after it illegal activity has happened we would like to take action while it is happening she saidThe BMC will also launch a 247 helpline at its Lower Parel Disaster Mgmt Cell which will address civic complaints in three hours flat A feedback of the action taken will be sent to the complainants mobile number PicAshish RajeHow it worksCivic officials involved in the project said that the monitoring will be done with the help of change detection reports The satellite images will be taken regularly with a 24hour lag period The data will be processed using the base maps as reference The system is able to detect any deviations in the image and the base map this could include illegal activities like deforestation or dumping of debris in the mangrove patch A notification will then be sent to us and we will alert the department concerned be it forest department or the mangrove cell said an official involved in the project Procuring these images and reports will cost the BMC around Rs 3 to 4 crore per annumTop Representational maps from Digital Globe indicate how any change yellow boxes indicate new construction on the base map below will be monitored every 24 hrsDigital Globe will first process and hand over the images to NSRC which will then share it with the BMC When asked how these images would be different from those available on Google Earth an official from Digital Globe explained that Google also buys the satellite images from their company but the data on their maps is updated only once every three months and is primarily used for navigation purposesWe take imagery from different spectral bands and then do an imageanalysis and develop algorithms to give a scientific analysis of how the biomasses like mangroves have changed the official said The official added that the images will have a resolution of 30cm This means that from the satellite we will be able to measure any object which is 30 cm or moreActivists still cynicalEnvironmentalists and activists who have been fighting to save Mumbais ecosensitive zones felt that the initiative had potential but remained cynical of its resultsShruti Agarwal who along with her husband Sunil has been fighting to prevent construction activity on a 80acre wetland patch in Talawe Navi Mumbai for a golf course it could render several migratory birds homeless said We need urgent intervention Development cannot be at the cost of destroying forest areasThe satellite images will be scientifically analysed to check if the biomasses like mangroves and forest cover have changed Pic CourtesyDigitalGlobecomStalin Dayanand environmentalist and director of NGO Vanashakti and member of the Aarey Conservation Group added It is very encouraging to see that the BMC is trying to monitor green zones However the new Development Plan is a classic case of the right hand not knowing what the left is doing Aarey colony has been declared as an ecosensitive zone and is out of bounds for construction But if the planning authority is sanctioning townships for the tribal community in Aarey its a complete mockery he saidIdzes Kundan Additional municipal commissionerRishi Aggarwal a socialenvironment activist and Observer Research Foundation fellow pointed out that though the initiative can help with early detection of illegal activities the BMC should also focus on what to do with that information once they have it Realtime monitoring is a positive step However government bodies cannot act alone and the BMC has to think about what can be done to deter people he saidRishi Aggarwal Socialenvironment activistN Vasudevan additional principal chief conservator of forest and mangroves said that there is no alarm concerning the citys green cover In 2013 the mangrove cover in the city was spread out over 43 sq km which increased to 48 sq km in 2015 and then 64 sq km in 2017 due to the efforts that we have taken over the years Now that the BMC is monitoring ecosensitive areas we will get alerts on a regular basis he saidCell to tackle civic woesIn order to address the flood of complaints it receives on a daily basis the BMC will be launching an active complaint monitoring cell next month Complainants will be able to reach the cell on the 247 helpline number 1916 After the complaint is communicated the complainants mobile number will be recorded in the system and an OTP will be sent to verify it Once the complaint is registered the concerned official will be expected to address the issue within three hours A feedback of the action taken will be also be sent to complainants mobile number Anil Joseph chairperson of the Perry Roads Residents Association said Anything that is more interactive and convenient for citizens to file a complaint is a good initiativeCatch up on all the latest Mumbai news crime news current affairs and also a complete guide on Mumbai from food to things to do and events across the city here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates