India, Jan. 30 -- Full-scale construction of the 26.3-km Versova-Bhayandar Coastal Road has begun after the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) received a crucial working permission from Maharashtra's mangrove cell, marking a major milestone for the long-pending Rs.22,000-crore infrastructure project.

The clearance, granted on January 20, followed the Bombay High Court's approval last month, allowing the civic body to proceed despite the project's impact on mangroves. Construction will require the removal of up to 45,673 mangroves from the nearly 60,000 along the alignment.

The BMC had started building piers in Dindoshi and Goregaon in August last year, along with preliminary work in areas that don't fall under Coastal Regulation Z...