Mumbai: In a move that may save thousands of trees, the Bombay High Court on Tuesday ruled that the Thane Municipal Corporation’s (TMC) tree authority has been wrongly constituted.
A Division Bench of Justice Abhay Oka and Justice M.S. Sonak was hearing a public interest litigation filed by a resident Rohit Joshi.
He urged the court to rectify the errors and violations of the statute, committed in constituting the statutory tree authority for the municipal limits of Thane, in accordance with the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975.
He said that officials have illegally appointed several non-qualified members, without following due process, thereby causing danger to the preservation, protection, and conservation of trees, which is the primary object of the Urban Tree Act.
Mr. Joshi alleged that of the six nominated members, only three are graduates in science/botany/agriculture whereas the other three have a lower educational qualification, and have political background.
The court said that the tree authority is wrongly constituted and all the decisions taken by the TMC tree committee stand cancelled. The HC also denied permission to cutting of trees till January 24, 2018.
