The Delhi High Court on Friday, 22 June, refused to put a stay on the felling of trees, which was sanctioned by the Centre for the re-development of six South Delhi colonies.
The order came in response to a plea that was filed in the HC, challenging the Centre’s move to cut down the trees.
While passing the order, the vacation bench comprising of Justices A K Chawla and Navin Chawla issued notices to the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC), the Central Public Works Department (CPWD), the ministries of Environment and Housing, as well as the Delhi Pollution Control Committee (DPCC), seeking their responses to the plea.
According to PTI, the bench said it was not inclined to grant an ex-parte order at the moment and wanted to hear the NBCC before issuing any direction. It also told the petitioner, Dr Kaushal Kant Mishra, that the project has been underway for several months, and that the clearances were sought in 2017-18.
After the Delhi HC’s order, Dr Mishra tweeted:
The PIL had sought setting aside of the terms of reference (ToR) and the environment clearances (EC) granted to the project by the Environment Ministry, saying it would lead to felling of over 16,500 trees.
The six south Delhi colonies where the trees would be felled are Sarojini Nagar, Naoroji Nagar, Netaji Nagar, Thyagaraja Nagar, Mohammadpur and Kasturba Nagar, the petition said.
Angry Citizens March in Protest
Meanwhile, several angry citizens took out a peaceful march in protest of the Centre’s decision, claiming that felling the trees would pollute the air further.
Braving the heat, the citizens reportedly took out a march in Netaji Nagar, armed with banners and candles.
The protest was reportedly organised by a cluster of organisations including the DelhiTreesSOS, Help Delhi Breathe, and Jhatakaa Organisation. The organisations have also begun an online petition to stop the government from cutting down the trees.
(With inputs from PTI.)
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