According to a report in Indian Express, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) is planning to fell or transplant 763 trees. This is being done for thirteen development projects across the city and includes the construction of building and flyovers as well as the expansion of railway lines. It is being said that to carry out these expansion projects it will be required to axe or transplantation of trees.
A proposal regarding these projects will be presented to the Tree Authority for an approval, out of the thirteen projects eight will be executed by private builders. As per the report about 265 tress have to be removed for the Santacruz elevated road project, 121 trees for widening the Usha Nagar nullah in Bhandup. Apart from this, 37 trees will be removed for the sixth line on Western railway near Santacruz station.
A meeting which was scheduled for July 7 in order to take the approval for the thirteen projects was cancelled. This was done as BJP corporators claimed that out of these 13, three projects required a site inspection by Tree Authority, which was not carried out.
On June 8, 2020 BJP corporator and a member of the Tree Authority, Abhijit Samant wrote a letter to the commissioner of BMC Iqbal Singh Chahal asking him to inquire as to how these projects were included without the inspection of the Tree Authority.
“As per the procedure, before bringing any proposal to the Tree Authority, the BMC’s garden department organises a visit for at least one Tree Authority member to the actual project site in question. This was not done in case of three projects. What is the motive behind this? This should be probed,” said Abhijit Samant.
He also expressed his concern over the fact that if the proposals are approved without the inspection of Tree Authority, there could be a chance that trees will be removed even if it is not required.
There was a huge outrage by Mumbaikars and various activists in October 2019 when more than two thousand trees were wiped out from Aarey Forest for a Metro project.
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