In a significant triumph for environmentalists and bird lovers alike, the Maharashtra State Wildlife Board on Thursday approved a proposal to designate Navi Mumbai’s 30-acre DPS Flamingo Lake as a conservation reserve. This makes it the first wetland from the Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary’s (TCFS) satellite ecosystem to receive such a protected status.
The pink migratory birds that give the lake its name often migrate to these satellite wetlands during high tide in search of food and resting places. Environmental organizations have long pointed to the ecological significance of these wetlands.
The proposal, Agenda 4.1, was formally approved at a crucial meeting of the State Wildlife Board headed by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in Mumbai. Forest Minister Ganesh Naik, also vice-chairman of the Board, strongly supported the proposal, terming the lake “a vital ecological zone that sustains flamingo populations and supports the biodiversity of Navi Mumbai.”
This action is not just about saving a lake but about saving the entire urban biodiversity system,” Naik said while speaking to the board members.
The order is the result of long-term lobbying by various environment organizations such as NatConnect Foundation, Navi Mumbai Environment Preservation Society (NMEPS), Save Flamingos and Wetlands Forum, and Kharghar Wetlands and Hills Forum. They had even organized human chains on two occasions during the previous year to bring awareness regarding the delicate habitat of the flamingos.
BN Kumar, director of NatConnect Foundation, who had earlier submitted a high-level committee recommendation to the Forest Minister, welcomed the decision. “This is a huge win for Navi Mumbai’s environment and all those who stood up for it,” he said.
DPS Flamingo Lake, part of the TCFS ecosystem that has been designated under the Ramsar Convention, is one of several wetlands—Panje, NRI, and TS Chanakya—the flamingos rely on as critical resting and feeding grounds at high tide.
The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), long a proponent of conserving these satellite wetlands, welcomed the move. “The SBWL has done the right thing in declaring DPS Lake a Flamingo Conservation Reserve,” BNHS director Kishor Rithe, who attended the meeting, said.
Rithe also pointed to an important secondary advantage of the decision: “Preserving this lake can avoid bird-hit risks around the future Navi Mumbai International Airport. BNHS is carrying out a long-term study on wetland trends and bird migration to aid this.”
The action is a milestone in Maharashtra’s efforts at wetland conservation and establishes a precedent for preserving other ecologically sensitive areas in urban settings.
