Trees being cut but none planted, reveals RTI

Over the past two months, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allowed the felling of more than 1,500 trees. However, it has not taken steps to compensate for the loss of green cover by planting other trees.

Over the past two months, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has allowed the felling of more than 1,500 trees. However, it has not taken steps to compensate for the loss of green cover by planting other trees.

Even as the civic body’s Tree Authority backs developmental projects by allowing trees obstructing work to be cut, questions have been raised about the accountability of the transplantation assurances. “The city’s tree-management policy is inclined towards urban development rather than the survival of trees,” said Avinash Kubal, deputy director, Maharashtra Nature Park.

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An example of this is the massive tree-cutting permissions granted to construction giant Oberoi Realty in Goregaon (East). According to data received in a Right To Information (RTI) application the Tree Authority had granted permission to cut 485 trees on the same plot owned by Oberoi Group between June 2003 and January 2011. The application filed by Raghunath Kothari, a Goregaon resident, also states that besides replanting some of the cut trees, 145 trees had to be transplanted by the end of 2011. “There is no data available on the location and number of trees that have been transplanted during the course of this project,” said Kothari. Last week, the tree authority gave permission to uproot another 481 trees, while assurances were made that trees would be transplanted to plots in Aarey Colony, University campus and Home Guards ground in Ghatkopar (West).

Defending the civic body’s stand, Suhas Karwande, deputy municipal commissioner (gardens) said: “The company has promised to submit details on the transplanted trees.”

A press statement issued by Oberoi Realty on Tuesday said that they had “planted approximately 1800 new trees and transplanted over 275 trees” over the past 10 years. “We started our Goregaon development in 2002, where we had permissions to cut 774 and transplant about 260 trees over a period of 10 years,” the company said. “We have records of every tree that has been removed and transplanted.”