Maharashtra forest dept assures action in Badlapur tree hacking

Several social activists from Ambernath have planted over 6,000 trees over the past five years, especially along the roads to increase the city’s green cover

Following complaints from Ambernath social workers of destruction of trees along the Badlapur-Katai Highway by encroachers, the forest department has assured to take care of the trees planted along the highway.

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Several social activists from Ambernath have planted over 6,000 trees over the past five years, especially along the roads to increase the city’s green cover. Some of these trees were also planted along the 15-km Katai-Badlapur Highway, connecting Dombivli to Karjat. Most of the them are now destroyed due to encroachments along the highway.

Ambernath resident Prashant Mhatre, 38, said, “For the past few months, small establishments such as garages, eateries, tea stalls have come up along the highway. The trees we planted were either cut or trimmed to accommodate these establishments. We approached their owners and asked them to refrain from damaging the trees, but they didn’t pay any heed.”

“On the stretch from Badlapur to Hajimalang, these miscreants have destroyed more than 100 such trees planted near the highway. We are going to send an official complaint to all the departments concerned. We approached the forest department who assured to ensure the safety of the trees.”

Forest department officer of Badlapur, P Thakar, said, “We cannot clear the encroachments but we will communicate with the department concerned over the issue. We’ll also ensure that there is no further damage to the trees and also conduct a survey of the stretch to check if some of the trees can be saved or else, we will take up plantation of trees along the stretch.”