Protecting Pune’s green cover: NGO urges local businesses to remove tree lights as Diwali approach
Protecting Pune's green cover: NGO urges local businesses to remove tree lights as Diwali approach ( Representational Image )
As Diwali approaches, the artificial lighting of trees across Pune has surged, with many commercial establishments using it to attract customers. However, this practice is raising concerns among environmentalists. The non-governmental organization Angholichi Goli (Bath Pill), which works on tree conservation, has approached around 50 shop and hotel owners on Fergusson College Road and Jangali Maharaj Road, urging them to remove artificial lights from trees in the interest of environmental protection.
Artificial lighting of trees can have harmful effects, disrupting their natural day-night cycle. This can interfere with a tree’s biological processes, including photosynthesis, growth, and reproduction, as trees rely on the natural duration of daylight to regulate these functions.
Despite the rising number of trees being lit up, the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) has not taken action against this. According to a 2013 National Green Tribunal (NGT) order, local authorities are responsible for ensuring the removal of advertisements, lighting, signages, and high-tension wires from trees. The PMC, along with the Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) and other local bodies, is obligated to enforce these regulations, but no significant steps have been taken so far.
Angholichi Goli has initiated dialogue with local businesses, emphasizing the environmental consequences of artificial lighting on trees. They hope that businesses will voluntarily comply and remove the lights to protect Pune’s green cover.
The issue highlights the need for stricter enforcement of environmental laws and greater awareness of how artificial lighting can harm urban trees.
