HC asks PMC to stop tree felling on Ganeshkhind Road, rehear objections
Pune NGO Parisar along with economist Ameet Singh and civic activist Hema Chari filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Bombay High Court to stop the felling of trees
The Bombay High Court has asked the Pune Municipal Corporation to stop any further cutting of trees on Ganeshkhind Road, known as University Road, and rehear public objections.
The PMC tree authority had earlier given permission to cut 192 trees on the stretch for proposed road widening. Environmentalists and residents approached the court.
Pune NGO Parisar along with economist Ameet Singh and civic activist Hema Chari filed a public interest litigation (PIL) in the Bombay High Court to stop the felling of trees.
According to PMC, the stretch from SPPU Gate until Sancheti is currently being widened from 36 metres to 45 metres.
The PIL claimed that permission for tree cutting was given in violation of the provisions of the Maharashtra Tree Act.
The PMC road department, according to the petition, had applied for permission to cut 105 trees and transplant 87 on August 21, 2023.
“The PMC issued a public notice calling for objections until August 18, but in a shocking move, the municipal commissioner Vikram Kumar, who is also the PMC Tree Authority, sanctioned the felling of trees on August 18 itself, without considering any of the objections raised, in clear violation of the Maharashtra Tree Act provisions and earlier High Court judgments regarding the same,” the petitioners claimed.
The HC bench hearing the PIL headed by the Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Arif Doctor instructed PMC to re-issue the notice and rehear the objections.
Nisha Chavan, head, PMC legal department, said, “The High Court has asked to follow due process in the case and give hearing to the petitioners. As instructed by the court, the municipal commissioner will rehear the objections. We have not received the order yet, but got briefing from our legal team.”
Singh, one of the petitioners, welcomed the order. “Rampant tree cutting is happening all over the city in complete violation of the law. PMC has become a conveyor belt for chopping trees. They’re chopping thousands of trees every month. I request residents to join hands in the effort to save our tree cover. Please download the GPS camera software. Take photos of trees being chopped and tag all of us. We need evidence of PMC’s so called “development” model to stop their rampant tree felling,” Singh said.
Chari, another petitioner, questioned the hurried manner in which the road widening was happening.
“With the Metro, what is the need for the road to be widened to 45 metres, that too without the provision of decent footpaths or cycle tracks. It will only lead to more traffic, more emissions and pollution. Cutting the trees will have a double impact on pollution,” she said.
As per the petition, the Indian Road Congress (IRC) standards for pedestrians and cycle tracks includes a 6.5 metre footpath with a clear 2 metre walking zone and a 2.2 metre cycle track is needed to be provided on a 45 metre road. “The PMC’s own comprehensive bicycle plan, approved by the General Body in 2017, calls for a cycle track on Ganeshkhind Road,” the petition claimed
Ranjit Gadgil, programme director, Parisar, said, “We have asked for the design of the road, which should be as per the mandatory IRC guidelines and the city’s own Urban Street Design Guidelines, but have been told that only a 2.5 metre footpath will be provided. We have raised these issues in the High Court and hope that PMC will now follow these standards. If they do, hardly any trees will be affected, as they can be accommodated in the design. Otherwise, we will approach the court again.”
The road plan
*192 fully-grown trees proposed to be felled for road widening under the PMRDA metro and flyover project
*Authorities have already cut down some trees
*Plan was to relocate around 87 native species trees
*PMRDA claims it has till date relocated 11 trees
*The stretch of road from SPPU Gate to Sancheti is being widened from 36 metres to 45 meters