Residents red-flag felling of trees

Blurb: PWD claims permission taken for Sangrur project

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Tribune News Service

Chandigarh/Sangrur, April 22

Flagging “senseless” cutting of trees in Sangrur in the name of a development project, city residents have lamented that despite writing to the Chief Secretary, Punjab, for a high-level investigation into the axing of fully grown trees, the Public Works Department (PWD) was going ahead with the project.

While the trees were felled near Mahakali temple, others were pruned in the Patiala gate area. “As per an RTI reply, they had earlier axed hundreds of fully grown trees from various roads without mandatory permission of the local nagar council,” said Jaswinder Sekhon, who has been highlighting the issue.

While PWD officers had been claiming they were undertaking a road widening project, locals called it waste of public money and murder of green cover as the road was already wide enough and there was no need for further widening.

The PWD, however, claimed no illegal felling had been undertaken in Sangrur and that development was being carried out as per the law.

PWD Minister Vijay Inder Singla claimed valid permission had been sought from the departments concerned and replantation was being done on the roadside and project sites.

For the widening of road from Fountain Chowk to the temple, 27 trees were required to be pruned/uprooted. Some of these had already dried up.

The Forest Department assessed the value of the trees at Rs 1,89,649 and the PWD obtained permission for pruning/cutting from the municipal council. An amount of Rs 1,95,700, more than the assessed value, had been deposited in the office of the Sangrur MC after conducting an auction.

For the widening of road from Allahabad Bank to bus stand, as many as 65 trees were required to be cut/pruned. A sum of Rs 1,15,000 was collected from the auction. During renovation of the local War Heroes Stadium, 18 trees were required to be cut and were auctioned for Rs 1,05,300, he claimed.

Bq

Replantation done

“Valid permission had been sought from the departments concerned and replantation was being done on the roadside and project sites”

— Vijay Inder Singla, PWD Minister