‘Trees wouldn’t be cut if they were voters’

HC takes note of rampant felling of trees, suggests CAG audit of timber generated

No check The court was told that a huge number of trees had been felled by the Delhi Metro. File Photo

The Delhi High Court on Monday said had trees in the Capital been voters, they would not be felled at an alarming rate. The court has now suggested a Comptroller and Auditor General (CAG) audit into the amount of timber generated by encroachers and even public authorities.

A Bench headed by Justice B. D. Ahmed, which was hearing a suo motu case pertaining to air pollution, said, “If trees were included in electoral roll as voters, then they would remain.”

Encroachers at play

The court was informed that a huge number of trees had been felled by local authorities like the Delhi Metro and by encroachers, as was the case in the Asola Bhatti sanctuary.

The Bench also proposed a CAG audit into the number of trees felled in Delhi and what was done with the timber.

“That is an income that has to be accounted for, hence the need for CAG audit,” the Bench said.

Deadlines not met

The high court also noted that the Delhi government had not adhered to the timelines fixed early last year for identifying and removing encroachments in the Asola Bhatti wildlife sanctuary.