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Thane Creek ठाणे खाडी | |
|---|---|
 Thane Creek | |
  Thane Creek | |
| Coordinates:19°01′N72°58′E / 19.02°N 72.97°E /19.02; 72.97 | |
| Country | India |
| State | Maharashtra |
| District, Metro | Thane,Mumbai |
| Named after | Thane |
| Languages | |
| • Official | Marathi |
| Time zone | UTC+5:30 (IST) |
| Designations | |
|---|---|
| Official name | Thane Creek |
| Designated | 13 April 2022 |
| Reference no. | 2490[1] |
Thane Creek, previouslyThana Creek, is anestuary of theArabian Sea and one of the two maindistributaries of theUlhas River, in theKonkan division ofMaharashtra.[2] The Ulhas splits at the northeast corner ofSalsette Island into its two main distributaries, the other one beingVasai Creek, both of which empty into the Arabian Sea. The creek forms the eastern boundary of Salsette island and separates the island frommainland ofKonkan. It gets its name from the city ofThane, previously Thana, located on the eastern bank of the creek.
The region of the Thane Creek has been recognized as anImportant Bird Area by theBombay Natural History Society, as it is home to various avian species. In particular, it harbors populations of flamingos and several other migratory and wading birds. The area has been designated as a protectedRamsar site since 2022.[1]
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The Maharashtra Government has declared the area along the western bank of the Thane Creek as the "Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary"(TCFS).[3] It is Maharashtra's second notified marine sanctuary after the Malvan Marine Sanctuary. The sanctuary was notified by the Govt. Gazette on 6 August 2015.
The TCFS lies on theCentral Asian Flyway of the Asia Pacific Global Migratory Flyway.[4] In 2022, the teams of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) counted more than 130,000 flamingoes in Thane creek. Thegreater flamingo andlesser flamingo are the two flamingo species present in the sanctuary.[5] Alongside the flamingoes, there are 167 species of birds and small mammals, likegolden jackals are also present.[6][7][8]
The total area of the TCFS is 16.9 square kilometres (1,690 ha) [which includes 8.96 square kilometres (896 ha) ofmangrove forests and 7.94 square kilometres (794 ha) of water body].[9]
Numerous islands are located in Thane Creek such asElephanta Island,Butcher Island and an unnamed island between Thane and Kalwa.
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Thane railway bridge or Thane railway viaduct is the oldest rail bridge constructed on this creek. The bridge lies betweenThane and Parsik tunnel, Kalwa. It has two sections, as there is an island in middle, a smaller section built of stones and concrete and a longer section built of stone and concrete but with a steel girder in middle. The first railway bridges in the country, they were built over the Thane creek when the Mumbai-Thane line was extended to Kalyan in May 1854. A report from Bombay Times elaborately describing the route for an account of a first trial journey of 18 November 1852 between Bombay and Tannah (before the official opening on 16 April 1853) also gave details on the Tannah-Callian (today,Kalyan) section, then under construction. It said that the railway [route] bent quickly towards 'the viaduct' on entering the village. This refers to the two old Thane creek bridges, that spanned the creek on the original line.
A new parallel railway bridge, also with two sections, has been constructed forlocal trains ,[10] on theharbour line of Mumbai suburban railway.
Another railway bridge connectingMankhurd andVashi was opened later.
There are numerous road bridges over Thane Creek.
The firstKalwa Bridge (19°11′49″N72°59′08″E / 19.19682°N 72.98553°E /19.19682; 72.98553 (Kalwa Bridge (first))) was built in 1863 and was first road bridge across Thane creek. The 350 m (1,150 ft) long bridge has ten pillars and ten arches. Following a structural audit conducted on the bridge in 2010, it was deemed unsafe for use by heavy vehicles, and only two and three-wheelers were permitted to use the bridge. According to officials the bridge's structure had suffered damage from a collision with a barge in 2006. The bridge was closed to all motor vehicle traffic from midnight on 3 August 2016, and only pedestrians were permitted to use the bridge. The bridge will not be demolished as it is classified as a heritage structure.[11][12][13][14]
The second Kalwa Bridge was opened in 1995. The third Kalwa Bridge was partially opened to traffic on 13 November 2022, and was fully opened on 10 March 2023.
Airoli bridge connectsMulund andAiroli. It was opened in 1999.
Vashi Bridge was built in 1973 and connectedMankhurd andVashi. This old bridge has been closed to traffic and been replaced by a newer bridge which was opened in 1997. A third bridge is currently under construction.
Mumbai Trans Harbour Link connectsSewri andChirle. It was opened in 2024.
