Skip to main content

Environmental Perception and River Rejuvenation: A Study of the Mithi River, Maharashtra, India

  • Chapter
  • First Online:
Fluvial Systems in the Anthropocene

Abstract

This research article is the study about the condition of the Mithi River. It is located in the Mumbai city in India. The objective of the study is to find out the problems behind the degradation of the river and the possible remedies for Rejuvenation. Data analysis shows the toxic metal components and 80–110 metrics of plastic present in the river in year 2010–2011 and the current WQI of the river is below average even during the time of Covid -19 pandemic in the year 2019–2020. The average WQI of the river is 42 but the current WQI is 22 which says the river water is neither potable nor can be used for domestic or industrial use. There were initiatives taken in the past few years by various volunteers and authorities, yet the Pollution in the river did not decrease. The major concern is the Locality and people staying near the river that are one of the root causes for the trouble. There is also lack of serious Government intervention in the problem-solving which has generated a careless behavior in people towards the Mithi River. The study focuses on what all are the problems that caused the damage to the river, what steps can be taken towards the betterment from the root causes that don’t let the river be cleansed in any way and the discussion for possible and practical improvement. The study also focuses on Environmental perception and River rejuvenation of Mithi river. The research approach used in this study is quantitative, and it collects both primary and secondary data. An online survey was conducted using self-administered questions. The survey rendered 73 responses. This survey, which was conducted, contained 30 questions. The evaluation of this survey was done electronically. Anthropogenic interventions, such as the dumping of industrial affluents and agricultural runoff from on bed to off bed landuse, have been identified as the primary sources of contamination in the current study. Natural forces such as neotectonic shifts and monsoon regimes have also exacerbated the problem. The findings show that the vast majority of people are aware of the river’s state and are dissatisfied with it, while a small percentage believe it is in the worst possible condition.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 99.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 129.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 179.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • CWPRS. (2006). 1-D mathematical model and desk studies for mitigating floods of Mithi River in Mumbai. Central Water and Power Research Station Khadakwasla, Pune (Technical Report No. 4297). Government of India Ministry of Water Resources.

    Google Scholar 

  • Demographia. (2009). Mumbai wards and districts: Population and density by sector 2001, from Demographia online a Wendell Cox Consultancy, http://www.demographia.com/db-mumbaidistr91.htm accessed on 2009.07.24.

  • Environmental Status Report of Mumbai Metropolitan Region. (2014). The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI).

    Google Scholar 

  • Fact Finding Committee on Mumbai Floods - Final Report by Chitale, D. M. (2006).

    Google Scholar 

  • Handa, S., & Jadhav, R. (2015). Biodiversity of Algae in the Mithi river- A pilotstudy. Global Journal of Advanced Research, 2(8), 1245–1250 ISSN: 2394-5788.

    Google Scholar 

  • Harvey, D. (1996). Justice, nature and the geography of difference. Blackwell Publishers.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hinchliffe, S., & Whatmore, S. (2006). Living cities: towards a politics of conviviality. Science as Culture.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hu, Z. (2016). The basic functions and governance of urban rivers. International Conference on Management Science, Education Technology, Arts, Social Science and Economics. Advances in Social Science, Education and Humanities Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • IIT-B. (2006). Development of Action Plan for Environment Improvement of Mithi River along its banks. Second Interim Report. Mumbai: IIT-B.

    Google Scholar 

  • Karaouzas, I., Smeti, E., Vourka, A., Vardakas, L., Mentzafou, A., Tornés, E., Sabater, S., Muñoz, I., Skoulikidis, N. T., & Kalogianni, E. (2018). Assessing the ecological effects of water stress and pollution in a temporary river-implications for water management. Science of the Total Environment, 618, 1591–1604.

    Article  ADS  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Khan, M. (2014). Hydrological response to urbanization of Mithi river, Mumbai, India. Corpus ID: 130353275.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kirtane, G. (2011). Making the Sewer, a river again: Why Mumbai must reclaim its Mithi. Observer Research Foundation Mumbai.

    Google Scholar 

  • Latour, B. (2005). Reassembling the social: An introduction to actor-network-theory. Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meitei, N. S., & Patil, P. M. (2004). Water quality of Purna river in Purna town in Maharashtra. Journal of Aqua Biology, 19, 77–78.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mithi River Water Pollution and Recommendations for Its Control by Klean Environmental Consultants Pvt. Ltd., MPCB (2004).

    Google Scholar 

  • MMRDA-Mithi river development and Protection Authority. (2005). https://mmrda.maharashtra.gov.in/mithi-river-development-and-protection-authority-mrdpa

  • National Environmental Engineering Research Institute. (2001). Current status of Mithi river and possible solutions.

    Google Scholar 

  • Natu Committe Report. (1974). Integrated impact assessment of Mithi river. Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ravi, R., & Asad, H. (2006). Increasing storm water drainage capacity of Mithi river and Mumbai city drains. IIT-Bombay. SP1-Mumbai-Mithi-river.pdf accessed on 2008.12.10.

    Google Scholar 

  • Report on Mithi River Water Pollution by “Klean Environmental Consultants Pvt Ltd.”, July (2004).

    Google Scholar 

  • Smeti, E., von Schiller, D., Karaouzas, I., Laschou, S., Vardakas, L., Sabater, S., et al. (2019). Multiple stressor effects on biodiversity and ecosystem functioning in a Mediterranean temporary river. Science of the Total Environment, 647, 1179–1187.

    Article  ADS  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Swyngedouw. (2004). Social power and the urbanization of water, flows of power. Oxford University press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Toham, A. K., & Teugels, G. G. (1999). First data on an Index of Biotic Integrity (IBI) based on fish assemblages for the assessment of the impact of deforestation in a tropical West African river system. Hydrobiologia, 397, 29–38.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Trivedi, P. R. (1989–1990). “Environmental Impact Assessment” Encyclopaedia of Indian Environment (Volume II).

    Google Scholar 

  • UXO-India. (2022). Urban Expansion Observatory, Mahatma Education Society, New Panvel.

    Google Scholar 

  • Washington, H. G. (1984). Diversity, biotic and similarity indices: A review with special relevance to aquatic ecosystems. Water Research, 18(6), 653–694.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wepener, V., Euler, N., Van Vuren, J. H. J., Du Preez, H. H., & Kohler, A. (1992). The development of an aquatic toxicity index as a tool in the operational management of water quality in the Olifants river (Knsger National Park). Koedoe, 35(2), 1–9.

    Article  Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Meera Ranjith .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2022 The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG

About this chapter

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this chapter

Ranjith, M., Sherla, A.R. (2022). Environmental Perception and River Rejuvenation: A Study of the Mithi River, Maharashtra, India. In: Islam, A., Das, P., Ghosh, S., Mukhopadhyay, A., Das Gupta, A., Kumar Singh, A. (eds) Fluvial Systems in the Anthropocene. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-11181-5_7

Download citation

Publish with us

Policies and ethics