Kejriwal may be planting trees, but his own govt department wants permission to cut them

Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal plants a sapling during a mass plantation drive in East Delhi | PTI

Researchers from think-tank say the department has approached high court, call on CM to revive Delhi tree authority. 

New Delhi: While Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal Saturday launched an eco-friendly drive to plant close to five lakh trees and shrubs across 600 locations in the capital, his own government department has sought permission to restart the felling of trees.

Research scholars from the Delhi-based think tank, the Centre for Policy Research (CPR), say that the Delhi Forest Department approached the Delhi High Court Thursday, seeking permission to restart the felling of trees in the national capital.

In its application, the forest department has urged the court to not only restore its power to fell trees but also allow it to grant permission to cut trees. The Delhi High Court had banned the felling of trees in the national capital in July this year.

Revive Delhi tree authority: researchers urge government

In a letter to the chief minister, CPR legal research director Kanchi Kohli and senior fellow Manju Menon, have urged the government to re-establish the Delhi Tree Authority, which they claim has been non-functional for the past three years.

“With the tree authority dysfunctional, there is no oversight for the review of proposals such as the redevelopment of seven GPRA colonies that involve the felling of over 14,000 trees. As per law, the Tree Authority should have studied these proposals before the decision to permit tree felling were granted by the concerned Tree Officer,” their letter reads.

The letter also points out ‘loopholes’ that need to be addressed in the Delhi Preservation of Trees Act (DPTA), 1994.  “A critical lacuna in the DPTA, 1994 is the lack of any public participation provisions for reviewing tree felling permissions or securing partnership the tree census,” the letter states.

The scholars have demanded that the Delhi Tree Authority should be re-constituted with urban planners, water conservation organisation and RWAs on board and no permission should be granted for felling any tree before the health of DTA is restored.

Delhi Government spokesperson Saurabh Bhardwaj has not replied to the text messages and calls. The story will be updated once the government’s reaction is received.