Illegal tree felling: Illegal tree felling in Ooty: Activists raise concerns | News from Coimbatore
Udhagamandalam: The green cover shrinks quickly in Uttar Pradesh: with the people who indiscriminately cut down trees under the pretext Monsoon disasters.
More than 600 trees were uprooted in Ooty 10 days ago during heavy rains. In addition, several trees were felled as part of the monsoon preparations, which posed a danger to people. According to ActivistsTrees that pose no danger are also felled because the monsoon serves as protection.
Activist K Kumar Selvam said, “Earlier, it was so difficult to get permission to cut trees even if they posed a threat to houses. Now, many trees are being cut on private land which pose no threat in the name of monsoon preparedness. We do not know for sure whether such trees are being cut with permission. This trend is widespread in Ooty city.”
Another activist, S Deepak, said that the rain situation was taken for granted to cut trees. “At places like Finger Post, Fernhill, St Mary’s Hill, Missionary Hill and Spencer’s Road, trees are being cut indiscriminately. Trees that do not pose a threat are being cut down while those that pose a threat are being left intact in some places.”
When TOI contacted Ooty district magistrate Saravanakumar to inspect the areas where permission had been granted to cut down the trees uprooted by the rain, he said, “We will instruct the village administrative officers concerned to inspect their areas for illegal tree felling.”
When we contacted Harish, the village administrative officer, he said he had inspected the Missionary Hill area where four trees were illegally felled, although permission had been granted for clearing only three uprooted trees. “We will take appropriate action against the people found guilty.”
Activists pointed out that inspection of the site is mandatory after tree felling and criticised the revenue department for being sluggish. They said the trees that pose a threat should be identified before every monsoon season and precautionary measures should be taken in advance.
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