As many as 141 of 168 trees that were to be transplanted by the Delhi transport department for the construction of a cluster bus depot in Burari are either “missing” or have “dried up”, the forest and wildlife department informed the National Green Tribunal (NGT).
According to a report filed by the forest department on April 8, an inspection on April 4 found that only 89 trees were found transplanted. Of these, only 27 were found in good health, with the rest having dried up. The trees were transplanted at a site near Metcalfe House in Civil Lines and comprised species of pilkhan and Arjun.
“Officials on behalf of the transport department are unable to provide identification of the remaining 79 trees at the site of the tree transplantation. Of the 89 transplanted trees, 27 were observed to be in good condition,” the report stated, adding that none of the transplanted trees was numbered.
On December 18, 2019, the forest department approved the felling of 327 trees and the transplantation of 168 trees. However, a petition filed with the NGT in February 2023 by a resident, Pramod Tyagi, claimed that 3,000 trees had been cut.
While the forest department refuted the claims on the grounds that necessary permissions were given for tree felling, it conceded that there were violations in the inspection of transplanted trees.
In its submission to the NGT, the forest department said that compensatory plantation would be required. “An order has been passed, directing the transport department carry out compensatory plantation of 705 trees (141 x 5), in lieu of failure to carry out transplantation of 141 trees,” the report stated.
Since the introduction of the Tree Transplantation Policy, 2020, the Delhi government has been working towards improving the survival rate of transplanted trees. The policy mandates transplantation of at least 80 per cent of trees felled for a project, with measures needed to ensure survival of at least 80 per cent of the total trees transplanted.
While the policy was officially notified later, transplantation has been taking place in Delhi since 2019. However, the latest data showed that only one in three trees are surviving the transplantation process.
In an affidavit submitted by the state forest and wildlife department to the Delhi High Court in May 2022, of 16,461 trees transplanted between 2019 and 2021, only 5,487 or 33.33% of the total trees survived the transplantation process.
