Construction of a dam over the Kalu river in Murbad is crucial to address the water woes of Mumbai, the state government informed the Bombay High Court on Tuesday in response to a petition challenging the dam project.

Assistant Government Pleader Vijay Patil told the court that the city’s population is estimated to reach 3.40 crore by 2031, which would require the government to take measures such as construction of dams.

Shramik Mukti Sangathana had moved the High Court challenging the construction of the dam since May 2010. Raising objections under the Forests Conservation Act,1980, the petitioners’ counsel Gayatri Singh told the court that the construction of the dam had put over 1,000 hectares of forest land in jeopardy. According to the petitioners, the state government did not have the necessary sanctions for conversion of the forest land into non-forest.

In lieu of the 999.2 hectares of land acquired by the government for the project, the petitioners stated, the government had proposed to rehabilitate the project-affected persons in Beed district. Patil, however, told the court, “The area is not going to be submerged, they (petitioners) are not going to be uprooted.”

Although the government admitted it does not have the necessary permission for conversion of the land to the non-forest category yet, Patil said an application seeking conversion has been filed before the Principal Conservator of forests in Nagpur, who will in turn forward the proposal to the competent authority in Delhi.

The bench presided over by Chief Justice Mohit Shah has directed the Ministry of Environment and Forests to file its reply in the case in four weeks.