Tree census ordered after allegations that hundreds were cut down for cricket stadium in Madhya Pradesh
The National Green Tribunal (NGT) in Bhopal has directed forest authorities in Madhya Pradesh to carry out a state-wide tree census and implement geo-tagging of trees, following a plea alleging that 700 trees were illegally felled in an ecologically sensitive area to make way for a cricket stadium and a road.
A bench comprising judicial member Sheo Kumar Singh and technical member Afroz Ahmad ordered that the census be conducted city-wise and district-wise across the state.
'There should be a tree census within the state, city-wise and district-wise to be monitored by the Principal Chief Conservator of Forest or an official nominated by the PCCF,' the tribunal said.
The NGT also directed a joint committee to submit a report on the tree-felling allegations. This committee will include representatives from the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change's integrated office in Bhopal, the Central Pollution Control Board (Bhopal), the Additional Chief Conservator of Forest (Bhopal), and the State Pollution Control Board.
The NGT said it would take between 70 and 100 years to regenerate the green cover provided by 700 trees. '…thus the destruction of so many trees adversely affects the environment and lives of several human beings. Accordingly, the compensation of compensatory afforestation should be in ratio to that period and ratio to the oxygen generated by the plant during the lifetime of the trees,' the tribunal said.
The order came in response to a plea filed by Nitin Saxena, who alleged that 700 trees were illegally cut down in violation of the state's tree conservation law — Madhya Pradesh Vrikshon Ka Parirakshan (Nagariya Kshetra) Adhiniyam, 2001. The trees were allegedly felled to facilitate construction within the catchment area of the Bhoj Wetland, near the Neelbad-Barkheda Nathu area in Bhopal.
Saxena emphasised the ecological significance of the Bhoj Wetland, a designated Ramsar site — a site that is designated to be of international importance under the Ramsar Convention.
The NGT also directed the Principal Chief Conservator of Forests and Divisional Forest Officers to ensure that geo-tagging of all trees be made mandatory, so that accurate records of their location, species, and number can be maintained. The geo-tagging data must be published and reported to the Chief Conservator of Forests, the tribunal added.
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