India, Sept. 19 -- The Bombay High Court on Thursday allowed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to fell 1,237 mangroves to construct a bridge over the Malad Creek that will establish direct road connectivity between Versova and Madh Island, observing that it was "necessary and expedient for public good and in public interest".

A division bench of chief justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and justice Advait Sethna noted that the proposed two-kilometre-long, four-lane cable-stayed bridge is expected to reduce the road distance between Versova and Madh Island by over 20 km and cut travel time from over an hour to 8-10 minutes.

The bench clarified that it was allowing the felling of mangroves and the diversion of a mangrove forest not...