NGT directs Pune civic body not to cut trees for RFD project till environment clearance amendment gets nod

Hearing the application in the western zone bench of the NGT, judicial member Dinesh Kumar Singh and expert member Vijay Kulkarni directed: “PMC not to fell any tree till the SEIAA decides as to whether the amendment in Environmental Clearance is to be allowed.”

The applicants had submitted that in the Detailed Project Report (DPR), the PMC mentions that the design carefully retains existing trees and also proposes additional green areas, promotion of activities like boating as well as cycling. The master plan captures the essence of the place and cherishes these structures, and to accommodate them, the embankment design is modified as per the requirement on site, it said. The DPR also records that Pune city boasts of a great wealth of trees which keeps increasing exponentially. The existing Pune river edge already consists of a large number of trees, which will be integrated with the proposed riverfront development. It is very important to retain and enrich the green heritage of the city. To protect these existing as well as the proposed trees in the riverfront development, tree guards will thus be used, it says.

The applicant also submitted to the NGT that the PMC, in separate meetings with the State Level Expert Appraisal Committee (SEAC) and SEIAA in 2019 had informed that the number of trees to be cut and planted was not applicable for the project. However, a public notice was issued by the PMC’s tree authority for the removal and transplantation of trees.

The RFD project includes the development of a 44-km river stretch, which includes 22.2 km of Mula river, 10.4 km of Mutha river and 11.8 km of the Mula-Mutha river. The project is divided into multiple stretches for implementation and work has begun on two stretches.

According to the civic body’s proposal, a total of 7,539 trees will be affected by the project, of which 3,110 will be felled and 4,329 will be transplanted. The PMC will plant 66,434 new trees to compensate for the cutting of trees.

This led to protests from concerned citizens who staged a ‘Chipko Andolan’ to oppose the felling of trees by holding a protest march from Sambhaji Garden gate to Garware bridge through the riverside road under the banner of ‘Save Mula-Mutha’, demanding to clean the river first, instead of merely conducting beautification.

Earlier, 11 environment experts returned the ‘Paryavaran Doot’ environment ambassadors award of the PMC saying they felt cheated by the administration which has taken up massive destruction of natural greenery while implementing the RFD project and proposed road on Vetal Tekdi.