NCP Pune stages protest against cutting of trees for riverfront development projectÂ
Pune: Pune Municipal Corporation‘s plan to cut down thousands of trees in the name of river improvement project has sparked strong opposition from the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP), which is determined to prevent the degradation of Pune’s environment.
Speaking at a protest against the tree felling, City President Prashant Jagtap strongly criticized the Municipal Corporation’s plans, saying “If the Pune Municipal Administration is going to kill 6,000 trees in the name of a river improvement project, this is definitely not a good sign for the people of Pune. The trees that are proposed to be cut are indigenous trees and are amongst those providing natural atmosphere for the ecosystem. NCP is strongly against the killing of these trees.”
Jagtap went on to stress that Pune’s development should go hand-in-hand with protecting the environment, and that it was the responsibility of the Municipal Corporation to strike a balance between the two. He also expressed concern that the trees were being cut down without any scientific study, and questioned whether the municipality would be able to successfully replant and nurture the few trees that would be planted in their place.
Spokesman Pradeep Deshmukh echoed Jagtap’s concerns, saying that the tree cutting was being done solely to please a few and that it was impossible to replant all the trees.Â
