Andheri locals root for fallen rain tree

Former corporator did not take BMC permission to fell it, allege residents

Residents and civic activists of JB Nagar in Andheri are up in arms over the felling of an old rain tree in the Thresa Triump Building compound on Sunday morning.They allege two branches of the tree, with a girth of 18 inches, were cut at the behest of a former corporator of the area, who did not take mandatory permission from the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation.“I saw the tree cut in the morning and informed officers at the JB Nagar police chowki. When the cops asked for the mandatory permit to cut the tree, former corporator Subhash Sawant produced a photocopy of the permit, but without the requisite stamp of the concerned officer. Sawant, known earlier too for felling trees in the area, was present at the site,” said James John, an Action for Good Governance and Networking in India ( AGNI) coordinator, who has lodged a written complaint. The Maharashtra Urban Areas Protection and Preservation of Trees Act says a tree officer not less than the rank of a ward officer must grant permission for the felling of a tree, which includes trimming branches or burning it in private or public premises.It further states that the tree officer must inspect the site, for which permission is to be sought within 30 days of receipt of the application. It also directs the tree officer to put up a public notice on the tree and in local newspapers. Ashok Pai, an activist and resident of the area said, “Vasant Prabhu, the ward officer of our area, has been on leave for a month, so he can’t have inspected the tree.”“There was no notice put up to cut this tree. Similar violations of the law have taken place in the past, where three trees were cut and permission was granted six days later,” added Pai. BMC officials from the K-east ward and corporator Sawant were unavailable for comment.