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This is an archive article published on July 30, 2024
NGT notice to Punjab over plan to fell more than 7,000 trees to widen Sirhind-Patiala road
Punjab forest authorities say over 60,000 saplings will be planted in Hoshiarpur and Ropar to make up for the loss.
The news report indicated to the NGT that sand miners in the region were building makeshift roads across the river. (File)
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued a notice to the Punjab Government over its plan to cut 7,392 fully grown trees and around 20,000 mid-sized trees as part of the four-laning of a 22-km stretch of the Sirhind-Patiala road.
The notices were issued to the chief secretary, the principal chief conservator of forests, the public works department, the district forest officer and the deputy commissioner in Patiala after the matter was raised by Kapil Arora, Jaskirat Singh and others of the Public Action Committee based in Ludhiana. Their petition has stated that the option of transplantation of trees should have been adopted.
The Indian Express reported on July 9 that many NGOs had raised their voice against the Rs 120-crore PWD project, with the chopping of trees already begun in a 7-km stretch of the road.
Forest authorities say they will plant over 60,000 saplings in Hoshiarpur and Ropar to make up for the loss. With the state having only a minuscule 3.67 per cent of its area under forest cover as against the national requirement of 33 per cent, environmentalists are not happy with the idea of this afforestation drive.
Kapil Arora said, “We have said in our plea that highways shouldn’t be looked upon merely as a means of transportation but as a part and parcel of the environmental and socio-economic milieu. Moreover, the plantation has been proposed in Hoshiarpur, 180 km away, and Ropar, 75 km away from where the trees are being felled.”
The activists have also expressed concern about reduced oxygen levels in the absence of adequate forest cover.
Kapil Arora appeared before the tribunal via videoconferencing when the matter was heard on July 24. The next date of hearing is October 17.
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Patiala-based Arshleen Ahluwalia and others from the NGO Sambh Sambhal Foundation have raised the matter before the forest department, PWD, district administration, and the Patiala MP and MLAs.
The four-laning project got clearance in December 2021 under the Congress government.
‘4,500 more trees to be chopped’
Jaskirat Singh and Kuldeep Singh Khaira from the PAC said they had filed another case with the national tribunal regarding non-compliance with environmental and road-related guidelines. As part of widening the road on the Patiala side, an additional 4,500 trees are to be cut, they said.
“We hope that following the NGT’s notice, the Punjab Government will seriously consider this issue without any delay and ensure the proper construction of the Sirhind-Patiala road while adhering to environmental rules by transplanting as many trees as possible and arranging for planting trees by acquiring space around the road to prevent air pollution.”
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