India, July 27 -- The Bombay high court has appointed two lawyers to visit compensatory mangrove plantation sites in Mumbai and its outskirts and ascertain if work was carried out as per claims made by the forest department via an affidavit in court.

The division bench of justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale issued the instructions on July 23 after noticing inordinate delays on the part of the forest department in completing compensatory mangrove plantations.

The court was hearing a petition filed by the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA), seeking permission to construct a car shed for line five of the metro at Kasheli in Thane and erect a transmission line through mangrove forests.

The court had, during ...