Pune: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has reprimanded the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) for marking 96 trees for cutting without proper justification during the construction of a new bridge near Koregaon Park’s Sadhu Vaswani Bridge.

While the bridge's demolition and replacement were necessary due to safety concerns, activists discovered that many of the marked trees did not pose any obstruction to the project. This led environmental groups to approach the NGT, which prompted an inquiry into the civic body’s actions.

During the NGT hearing, the PMC admitted to mistakenly marking 96 trees for removal. The tribunal sternly warned the PMC to avoid such errors in the future, warning of punitive action if similar mistakes are repeated.

The tribunal also ordered the corporation to reduce the number of trees to be cut and ensure compliance with the Tree Preservation Act.

A petition was filed by environmental organization "Pune Samvad," represented by activists Amit Singh, Satya Natarajan, Gangotri Chanda, and the Secular Community, with legal representation from Advocate Maitreya Ghorpade. Following this, the NGT constituted a committee to inspect the site and provide a report.

In July, a team led by Abhay Pimparkar, Director of Environment and Climate Change, conducted a thorough inspection. It was revealed that the PMC lacked scientific methods to assess the age of the trees, a requirement under the Tree Preservation Act.

Additionally, it was found that the PMC had incorrectly marked 96 trees for removal. The corporation admitted that this marking was done in error.

After reviewing the report, the NGT ordered the PMC to correct its mistake and reduce the number of trees being cut. The docket for 61 trees marked for removal was canceled, and a new proposal was ordered for 18 trees, to be handled in compliance with the Tree Preservation Act.

The tribunal emphasized that any further mistakes would result in strict punitive measures. The tribunal also recognized the individual efforts of senior citizen Nandinidevi Pant, who actively worked to save the trees by counting and documenting the ones marked for cutting. Her contributions were noted during the hearing.

Initially, out of 119 trees near the Sadhu Vaswani Bridge, the PMC had planned to cut 96. However, due to the evidence presented by the activists, most of the trees have been saved.

Amit Singh, one of the key activists, remarked, "Development should not just be about construction; it must also take into account the preservation of trees and the environment."