Double directive to save greenery and grandeur

The fine amount is the highest for citizens staying in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s 400 sq km area,gradually reducing to Rs 500 in other areas of the state.

The state Urban Development Department has made this recommendation amending the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act (1975). As per the Act,there should be five trees in a 100-metre area in land reserved for recreational ground while there should be two trees in a 100-metre area in open space (buildings and societies).

Among the 21 modifications,section 9 (2) says if a tree officer observes that any area does not have trees as recommended by the Act then he/she can issue a notification to the property owners or possessors who will then be required to plant the trees in 90 days after receiving the directive.

“If there is not enough tree plantation in a particular area then the fine to be levied will be: Rs 5,000 to Rs 10,000 per tree (BMC area),Rs 2,000 to Rs 5,000 per tree (other municipal corporations and councils in A category),Rs 1,000 to Rs 2,000 per tree (B-category municipal councils) and Rs 500 to Rs 1,000 (C-category municipal councils).”

Defending the decision to levy fine,the state government said common citizens will be encouraged to maintain the ratio of trees in their area and this would create more green belts. “The high amount of penalty in metro areas will underline the importance of tree plantation,” it says.

However,green activists do not agree with this viewpoint. “Tree plantation cannot be compensated by fine. People will pay fine and shirk the responsibility. Awareness should be created on greenery and tree plantation. It should be ensured that the trees are appropriately planted and looked after,” said Tree Authority member U N Singh.

The proposal,which was tabled with the BMC for suggestion and objection,will now come up for final approval at the general body meeting,starting on February 5. After the approval,a notification in this regard will be issued by the state government making the penalty compulsory.

Licensed contractors
To discourage illegal tree felling in the name of trimming,the state government has recommended licensing of contractors by the Tree Authority. Only such contractors will be entitled to trim or cut a tree,after getting the required permission from the authority. Many a times developers who are given permission to trim or chop few branches,cut the whole tree.

SKYWALKS No hawkers or shops,says High Court

The plan of the Mumbai Metropolitan Region Development Authority (MMRDA) to relocate hawkers by allowing them on skywalks received a blow on Friday. The Bombay High Court ruled that no hawker or shop would be allowed on skywalks.

A division bench of Chief Justice Swatanter Kumar and Justice D Y Chandrachud also directed that skywalks be located at a reasonable distance from residential and commercial establishments to ensure privacy and security.

The court was hearing a petition by the Federation of Retail Traders Welfare Association (FRTWA) and Ranade Road Citizen’s Forum,an association from Dadar. Their contention was that skywalks were meant for pedestrians only. The Grant Road West Retail Traders Association and Dadar Merchants Association had also complained against proposed skywalks with inbuilt shopping areas.

The petitioners had challenged the proposed skywalk at Grant Road and Dadar. As per the petition,the proposed skywalk starts from Grant Road station till Nana Chowk circle and on Ranade Road and M C Jawale,Dadar. The petitioners’ lawyer Jamshed Mistry had produced a copy of a BMC notification saying hawkers and shops won’t be allowed on skywalks.

Additional Municipal Commissioner R A Rajeev later said the BMC had amended the Development Control Rules Act to make way for hawkers on skywalks after MMRDA proposed the plan. “But if the HC has directed that hawkers be not allowed on skywalks,then we will follow it,” he said.

The MMRDA had planned to construct “hawkers plazas” on skywalks to rehabilitate nearly 60,000 Project Affected Persons (PAPs) displaced by various projects. According to the plan,the width of the skywalk was to be seven metre,of which three would be for shops of around 100 sq ft. A “skywalk-cum-hawking-plazas” was under construction at Kanjurmarg.

Reacting to the order,Ratnakar Gaikwad,Metropolitan Commissioner said,“I’m yet to see the order. Shopping on skywalks was never a priority of the MMRDA. We planned to relocate PAPs wherever possible but not on every skywalk.”

Hinting that the hawker plaza plan would be scrapped,a senior MMRDA official said,“We’ll study the order and implement it. We may rework the designs of the skywalk and reduce its width to four metres.”

Viren Shah,president of FRTWA,said the court has asked the agency building skywalks to ensure enough distance is maintained from residential and commercial establishments. Shah was against skywalks. “We feel the state should utilise the Rs 600 crore on more important things. If the authorities remove hawkers from the streets it will create enough space for pedestrians on the road and there would be no need for skywalks.”