New Delhi, June 25: A year back, the NBCC started to cut down trees in Sarojini Nagar, Ring Road Market as part of their project to construct a multi-storey residential building. As per reports, more than 3,000 trees have already been cut down since last year in south Delhi area, and NBCC is planning to cut over 16,000 more.

In the latest development to the case, Delhi High Court has asked NBCC, "Can Delhi afford cutting of trees for the development of roads & buildings." As quoted in an ANI report, the Court has told NBCC, not to cut any more trees till July 4, which is also the next date of hearing in the case.

According to an IANS report, locals, to save 16,000 trees from felling, have started their Chipko movement- a forest conservation movement in 1970, where people embraced trees to prevent them from being cut in Uttarakhand (then Uttar Pradesh).

NBCC will cut the trees as part of their project to construct flats for Central government employees. The officials of NBCC, which comes under the Housing and Urban Affairs Ministry, clarified that there would be more plantation to compensate for the trees being cut down.

Minister of State for Housing and Urban Affairs, Hardeep Singh Puri said,"Till the time I am a minister no tree will be cut & for every tree that is cut we will plant ten trees. Green cover will go up by three times after re-development of 7 colonies in South Delhi. Young activists are too fast to blame.” He also asked the Twitter user to read the government’s press release regarding the cutting of trees issued in the interest of the Delhi people. Delhi BJP accused the Aam Aadmi Party of indulging in cheap politics over a sensitive issue of the felling of trees.

A public interest litigation was filed in the Delhi High Court against an environment clearance granted for felling of trees for developmental work. The high court issued notices to the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, state-owned construction firm NBCC, Ministry of Housing and Urban Affairs and others.

(With inputs from ANI)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jun 25, 2018 01:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).