A two-member bench of Uttarakhand High Court headed by the Chief Justice Barin Ghosh on Thursday rejected a review petition filed by the State principal chief conservator of forests (PCCF) against the HC order of September 3, 2013 making it mandatory to transplant trees whenever possible in Dehradun instead of axing such trees.
This development has been welcomed by concerned citizens and environmental activists who have been protesting against the ‘indiscriminate’ felling of green trees purportedly for facilitating construction and developmental works in the State capital.
Based on information procured under the Right to Information Act, the Citizens for Green Doon (CFGD) group has been complaining for long that the forest department has been permitting the cutting of mature green trees labeling them dangerous to facilitate various works even though such trees pose no real danger to people or property. Some years ago, the group had facilitated transplantation of a pilkhan tree which was coming in the way of road widening near the office of the Dehradun senior superintendent of police. later the forest department also transplanted nine mature trees to facilitate construction of the department’s integrated headquarters complex on Rajpur Road. However, in most cases, green trees are axed in Doon to facilitate construction works.
The CFGD had filed a PIl in the HC on this issue. According to the CFGD chief coordinator Dr Nitin Pandey, ruling on the petition, the High Court has ordered that the Government Order dated May 21, 2010 which calls for transplantation of all trees which can be transplanted, be implemented strictly and that any felling of trees will be taken as contempt of court.
Reacting to the judgement Dr Pandey said that even after the High Court’s order, the District administration had continued to fell trees which can easily be transplanted and the group intends to file a contempt petition very soon in the matter.
He said that over a dozen green trees at Ballupur Chowk have been felled though these could have been easily transplanted. The group has photographs and details of the trees which would soon be filed in the court, he added.