529 heritage trees vs. 45-metre road: Pune residents form human chain to save Ganeshkhind’s green cover

“Quality of life is proportional to the quality of our air, water, and resources, not fancy appliances or money. We want eight trees for every person gathered here today. We’ve been protesting for 10 years and will continue to do so,” said Satya Natrajan, one of the organisers.

The trees in question are flagged to be cleared for road widening — a project that demonstrators argue will do little to ease congestion.

“You can always build around. People don’t have a problem driving around the metro pillars in the middle of the road, what’s wrong with the trees? You’re not just transplanting trees, you’re moving an entire habitat. Birds and animals also depend on these trees so heavily. Preserve what we have first; new trees are always welcome. Metro, overbridge, expansion: none of this will help congestion. Public transport is the key.” said Shailaja Deshpande, an environmentalist present at the protest.

Root systems, microhabitats, and biodiversity are irreplaceable once destroyed, she said.

This issue has been taken to court previously, and some urge that it should be done again. Arpita Kotnis, a lawyer who has personally witnessed how government bodies utilise legal loopholes, mentioned that legal action could be taken. She pointed to the misenumeration of trees and their age by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC), which she described as clear evidence of data mismanagement of trees. “They should take this case to court again. We could file a writ or a PIL since this is an issue that directly affects the public,” she said.

A recurring sentiment throughout the demonstration was the disconnect of road-widening as a solution to congestion and the desperate need for better public transport. A protester, Pradeep Ghumre, stated: “One man sitting in a huge SUV takes up the space of four scooters. Put people in buses and metros instead of expanding roads for one man taking out his huge car.”

Yet even the metro drew criticism. Protesters noted that ridership remains low not because people don’t want alternatives to private vehicles, but because the infrastructure around public transport has not kept up. Last-mile connectivity was cited repeatedly as the missing link. Poor walkability pushes people toward private vehicles and away from public transport stations, which drives congestion, becomes the justification for cutting trees – a vicious cycle that, demonstrators argued, road expansion only deepens.

Urban designer and protestor Suhrd Joshi slammed the way in which the city is being designed. “If they want to build a wall-to-wall asphalt road, where are people supposed to walk or cycle? Basically, you are designing the city for people who drive Cretas and Toyota Fortuners. Do only people with an income over 12 lakh have a right to the road? Children cannot use the city. The elderly cannot use the city. Pregnant women, disabled people—they cannot use the city.”

Determined to make their cause heard, the demonstrators said they would keep staging protests over the coming days.

In 2024, the PMC was permitted to remove trees on Ganeshkhind Road for the construction of the flyover. Among the conditions were that trees must be transplanted rather than cut, and there must be compensatory plantation of 5,000 trees, with 95 per cent survival rate to be assured by PMC.

(Ira Kharshikar is an intern with The Indian Express)