NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Thursday proposed that the Delhi Development Authority, which illegally felled 1,670 trees in southern ridge, would plant double the number of trees cut in the ridge and hundred times the number of trees cut across the national capital as part of compensatory afforestation.
Though formal orders to this effect are expected to be passed by a bench led by CJI on Friday, the bench's proposal was accepted by advocates Maninder Singh and Vikas Singh, who appeared for DDA.
The bench asked senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan to suggest a mechanism to be put in place to prevent such illegal felling of trees by any authority in the ridge areas, the only patches of contiguous greens in Delhi that act as lungs for the polluted city.
While the DDA chairman and LG V K Saxena had put the number of trees felled without mandatory prior permission of the SC at 642, the forest department of Delhi had said 745 trees were cut. However, the Forest Survey of India had informed the court that as many as 1,670 trees were cut during Feb 16-26 for widening of road for proper access to vital installations like a super specialty hospital to treat wounded paramilitary personnel and the Saarc University.
Carbon stock loss due to felling of trees in 2.32 ha area is estimated at 130.36 tonne in all the five pools, which is equivalent to 477.99 tonne of CO2, the FSI had said. The forest department of Delhi had contested the FSI's claim. FSI has strongly objected to the under-reporting of the trees still standing in the project area. While the forest department said the total number of trees standing are 106 in RFA and 200 outside RFA (total 306), the FSI put their numbers at 166 inside RFA and 1,488 outside RFA (total 1,654).
Though formal orders to this effect are expected to be passed by a bench led by CJI on Friday, the bench's proposal was accepted by advocates Maninder Singh and Vikas Singh, who appeared for DDA.
The bench asked senior advocate Gopal Sankaranarayanan to suggest a mechanism to be put in place to prevent such illegal felling of trees by any authority in the ridge areas, the only patches of contiguous greens in Delhi that act as lungs for the polluted city.
While the DDA chairman and LG V K Saxena had put the number of trees felled without mandatory prior permission of the SC at 642, the forest department of Delhi had said 745 trees were cut. However, the Forest Survey of India had informed the court that as many as 1,670 trees were cut during Feb 16-26 for widening of road for proper access to vital installations like a super specialty hospital to treat wounded paramilitary personnel and the Saarc University.
Carbon stock loss due to felling of trees in 2.32 ha area is estimated at 130.36 tonne in all the five pools, which is equivalent to 477.99 tonne of CO2, the FSI had said. The forest department of Delhi had contested the FSI's claim. FSI has strongly objected to the under-reporting of the trees still standing in the project area. While the forest department said the total number of trees standing are 106 in RFA and 200 outside RFA (total 306), the FSI put their numbers at 166 inside RFA and 1,488 outside RFA (total 1,654).
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