Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Thursday heard a petition filed against the cutting of 1800 trees in Tapovan to create a Sadhu Gram (village for ascetics) during the Nashik Kumbh Mela. Taking cognizance of the petition, the Bombay High Court issued notices to the state government, Nashik Municipal Corporation, and the Tree Authority, directing them to respond.
Petition in High Court Against Tree Cutting in Tapovan
The court orally instructed the administration not to begin cutting the trees for the time being and adjourned the hearing until January 14. A legal battle has now begun against the proposed tree cutting. Local resident Madhukar Jagtap filed a petition in the Bombay High Court demanding that the trees in Tapovan not be cut. The petition was heard before a bench of Chief Justice Shri Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhand.
The administration had issued a circular on December 11 regarding the tree cutting, inviting objections and suggestions. According to this, hundreds of objections were registered with the municipal corporation administration by December 17, and a decision is legally expected within 45 days.
However, given the current circumstances, the administration could start the process immediately. The petitioners’ lawyer, Omkar Wable, speaking to ETV Bharat, said that this fear prompted the filing of the petition in the High Court. The petition also claims that since alternative land is available for the proposed Sadhu Gram, there is no need to build it in Tapovan.
What is the matter?
Millions of devotees, along with sadhus and saints from across the country, will gather in Nashik for the Singhast Kumbh Mela next year. A large Sadhu Gram (village for ascetics) is being built in Tapovan to accommodate them. Approximately two thousand trees will be cut for the Sadhu Gram. Local residents and several environmentalists have strongly opposed this. The Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) has filed a petition in the Mumbai High Court against the proposal to cut and replant trees to make way for a Sadhu Gram and an exhibition center (MICE hub) in Tapovan. The main demand in the petition is to restrain the Nashik Municipal Corporation from cutting down trees in Tapovan.
Their demands in the petition include preventing the felling of trees in Tapovan and halting or canceling the proposed exhibition center project. The administration has decided to cut down approximately 1800 trees in the Tapovan area of Nashik to construct a Sadhu Gram for the upcoming Kumbh Mela.
This decision is facing strong opposition from locals and environmentalists. Several celebrities have also voiced their opposition to the tree cutting on social media. Despite this, some BJP leaders and the local administration remain adamant about cutting down these trees and are publicly supporting the move.
