Thane Creek, previously Thana Creek, is an

estuary An estuary is a partially enclosed coastal body of brackish water with one or more rivers or streams flowing into it, and with a free connection to the open sea. Estuaries form a transition zone between river environments and maritime enviro ...

of the

Arabian Sea The Arabian Sea () is a region of sea in the northern Indian Ocean, bounded on the west by the Arabian Peninsula, Gulf of Aden and Guardafui Channel, on the northwest by Gulf of Oman and Iran, on the north by Pakistan, on the east by India, and ...

and one of the two main distributaries of the Ulhas River, in Konkan division of Maharashtra, India. The Ulhas splits at the northeast corner of Salsette island into its two main distributaries, the other one being the Vasai Creek, both of which empty into the Arabian Sea. The creek forms the eastern boundary of Salsette island and separates the island from mainland of

Konkan The Konkan is a stretch of land by the western coast of India, bound by the river Daman Ganga at Damaon in the north, to Anjediva Island next to Karwar town in the south; with the Arabian Sea to the west and the Deccan plateau to the eas ...

. It gets its name from the city of

Thane Thane (; previously known as Thana, List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name until 1996) is a metropolitan city located on the northwestern side of the list of Indian states, state of Maharashtra in India and on ...

, previously Thana, located on eastern banks of the creek. The region of the Thane Creek has been recognized as an

Important Bird Area An Important Bird and Biodiversity Area (IBA) is an area identified using an internationally agreed set of criteria as being globally important for the conservation of bird populations. IBA was developed and sites are identified by BirdLife Int ...

by the

Bombay Natural History Society The Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), founded on 15 September 1883, is one of the largest non-governmental organisations in India engaged in conservation and biodiversity research. It supports many research efforts through grants and publ ...

, 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 protected

Ramsar site A Ramsar site is a wetland site designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention,8 ha (O) *** Permanent 8 ha (P) *** Seasonal Intermittent < 8 ha(Ts) **

Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary

The Maharashtra Government has declared the area along the western bank of the Thane Creek as the "Thane Creek Flamingo Sanctuary"(TCFS). It is Maharashtra's second notified marine sanctuary after the Malvan Marine Sanctuary. The sanctuary was notified by Govt. Gazette on 6 August 2015. The TCFS lies on the Central Asian Flyway of the Asia Pacific Global Migratory Flyway. In 2022, the teams of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS) counted more than 130,000 flamingoes in Thane creek. The greater flamingo and lesser flamingo are the two flamingo species present in the sanctuary. Alongside the flamingoes, 167 species of birds and small mammals like

golden jackal The golden jackal (''Canis aureus''), also called the common jackal, is a wolf-like canid that is native to Eurasia. The golden jackal's coat varies in color from a pale creamy yellow in summer to a dark tawny beige in winter. It is smaller a ...

s are also present. The total area of the TCFS is hich includes of mangrove forests and of water body">mangrove.html" ;"title="hich includes of mangrove">hich includes of mangrove forests and of water body

Islands

Numerous islands are located in Thane Creek such as Elephanta Island, Butcher Island and an unnamed island between Thane and Kalwa.

Railway bridges

Thane railway bridge or Thane railway viaduct is the oldest rail bridge constructed on this creek. The bridge lies between 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 Kalyan (Pronunciation: əljaːɳ is a city on the banks of Ulhas River in Thane district of Maharashtra state in Konkan division. It is governed by Kalyan-Dombivli Municipal Corporation. Kalyan is a subdivision (Taluka) of Thane district ...

) section, then under construction. It said that the railway outebent 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 for local trains , on the harbour line of Mumbai suburban railway. Another railway bridge connecting Mankhurd and

Vashi Vashi is a residential and commercial node in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra, across the Thane Creek of the Arabian Sea on the outskirts of city of Mumbai. Vashi is named after the largest village present in Vashi Node. Overview Vashi is well-c ...

was opened later.

Road bridges

There are numerous road bridges over Thane Creek. The first Kalwa Bridge () was built in 1863 and was first road bridge across Thane creek. The 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. 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 connects Mulund and Airoli. It was opened in 1999. Vashi Bridge was built in 1973 and connected Mankhurd and

. 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 connects

Sewri Sewri (International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration, IAST: ''Śivdī,'' Help:IPA/Marathi, �iʋɖiː is a locality along the eastern edge of South Mumbai, in Maharashtra, India. It is also the name of a Sewri railway station, railway sta ...

and Chirle. It was opened in 2024.

References

External links

* http://www.mumbai77.com/city/4075/attractions/thane-creek-mudflats-flamingo-sanctuary/ * http://asc-india.org/seismi/seis-maharashtra.htm {{Ramsar sites in India Estuaries of Mumbai Geography of Thane district Ramsar sites in India Important Bird Areas of India