The National Green Tribunal’s order has halted the project by more than three weeks even as the tree protection committee members met on Monday to discuss the first phase of the project. Amidst protests and concerns from activists as well as locals regarding clearing trees around KBR Park in Banjara Hills, the committee discussed clearing 1,394 trees for improving four major junctions, near Maharaja Agrasen statue, on Road No. 45, KBR entrance point and near Film Nagar ramp on main road.
Works related to the remaining two junctions, to be taken up in the second phase, will require 925 more trees to be cut or relocated.
The Forest Department officials who carried out an assessment of the loss of carbon on account of felling of the 1,394 trees said that 76.05 tonnes of carbon accumulated over the period of tree growth will be lost as a result of this move. They said that it can be compensated by planting three saplings for every tree lost along with taking up pavement plantation.
The GHMC has informed that as per the traffic survey conducted by them, the present traffic volume on KBR main junction is about 1.02 lakh passenger cars per day, which is likely to go up to 2.23 lakh, an increase of 219 per cent.
A private consultant engaged by the GHMC to study traffic trends around KBR Park said that the project will help in the reduction of pollution by 55 per cent. He said that due to vehicle congestion at six traffic junctions around KBR Park, 32,096 litres of fuel is wasted every day due to idling of vehicles resulting in the emission of 107.92 tonnes of Carbon Dioxide. He added that the road network length should ideally be 20 per cent of the geographical area of the city but it was only 8 per cent in the case of Hyderabad.
The civil society members of the committee requested the officials to take up compensatory plantation within three kms of the site where a tree was cleared. It is learnt that the officials are toying with the idea of starting work for removing plantations in the monsoon owing to public pressure.
People seek compensatory plantation within three km of the site where a tree is cleared
