The Hindu : NATIONAL / TAMIL NADU : Advocate-Commissioner inspects Marudhamalai Road in Coimbatore

Advocate-Commissioner inspects Marudhamalai Road in Coimbatore

He has been asked to find out if the trees need to be cut

C. Kannan, Principal District Munsiff Court-appointed Commissioner, on Friday inspected the stretch along Marudhamalai Road to assess the number of trees cut and find out if all those had to be necessarily felled to widen the road.

He was accompanied by members of various environment groups, who had on Thursday, obtained an interim injunction from the court restraining the State Highways Department from cutting trees to widen the road.

The court, while granting the injunction till April 30, appointed advocate Mr. Kannan mandating him with inspecting the stretch where the trees had been cut, taking stock of the number of trees cut thus far and those marked to be cut.

The court also tasked him with assessing and recording the trees that could be spared. It also asked him to take the assistance of a photographer.

S. Mahesh Prasanna, a member of Osai, an environment organisation, said that the Advocate-Commissioner walked for a while and went on motorcycle inspecting the stretch from Lawley Road Junction to Karupparayan Koil on Marudhamalai Road.

Those who accompanied Mr. Kannan include Mr. Prasanna, Then Muruga Kani and M. Umesh of Osai, Jalaal of Nature Conservation Society, Salim of Environment Conservation Group, R. Karpagam of Oli, Vanitha Mohan of Siruthuli and Sujini of Race Course Neighbourhood Association (RANA) and Yoganathan of Matram besides members from Save Coimbatore Wetlands.

Ms. Karpagam along with T. Suresh, a Vadavalli resident, had filed the petition before the court stating that the Highways Department officials had cut more trees though they had permission for cutting only 210 trees.

The number of trees removed could be more than 210 trees.

They also said that the officials had marked more trees for cutting though those trees in no way hindered the road expansion work.

The petitioners had also sought replanting the felled trees stating that eight out of 10 such trees had survived in a few countries and cited the instance of Singapore replanting trees that were felled in Indonesia. They wanted the officials to replant the felled trees even if they did not have plans of planting saplings to compensate the loss of tree cover on Marudhamalai Road.

Meanwhile, commotion prevailed on Chellapppa Gounder Street, Kattoor, where the contractor the Coimbatore Corporation had engaged to construct storm water drains made arrangements for cutting trees to proceed with the construction work.

The Corporation had to twice stall the work as nature enthusiasts raised objections stating that the permission to cut trees had been accorded without referring the same to the tree protection committee.

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