Noida to chop 3,000 trees for city’s largest biodiversity park

A large-scale citizens’ movement is brewing in Sector 91 of Noida where the authority has decided to cut down 3,000 trees from an area of 75 acres. The reason behind the authority’s decision is that it wants to build the city’s largest biodiversity park.

The Noida authority has plans to clear the eucalyptus forest and plant about 5,000 native trees and around one lakh other shrubs and plants, including 19,625 ornamental ones. The authority has handed over the task to Uttar Pradesh forest corporation.

Residents and environmental groups, however, claim that besides eucalyptus, other tree species are also being felled, thereby damaging the biodiversity and the habitat of birds and animals.

With the authority turning a deaf ear to protests, resident groups have decided to start the ‘Chipko’ movement— groups embrace trees to stop them from being felled — on Saturday. Residents in Delhi had initiated a similar campaign in June this year to save 14,000 trees that were to be felled in Sarojini Nagar.

“Cutting of eucalyptus trees is okay but native species are also being harmed. What is the point of cutting full-grown neem trees to plant ornamental ones?” Chhavi Methi, media coordinator for Chipko Delhi-NCR, said.

Responding to complaints made on the Integrated Grievance Redressal System of the UP government, the authority denied plans to fell any tree apart from eucalyptus. The permission issued by the forest department also mentions that only 3,000 eucalyptus trees will be cut.

However, social media was abuzz on Friday with photos and videos of the cleared forest area and shots of a nilgai running in a field bereft of trees. “It doesn’t make sense to disturb the biodiversity of an area to create a biodiversity park. Besides, it is also absurd to construct an amphitheatre, food park or other concrete structures in a biodiversity park,” Vijay Dhasmana, environmentalist and curator of Aravali biodiversity park, said.

A forest department team visited Sector 91 on Friday and found that trees other than eucalyptus were also cut.“We have filed a case for cutting of five gum trees and two neem trees. We will inspect the area again and check if any other plant has been damaged,” P K Srivastava, divisional forest officer, said. A tree census will also be conducted by residents on Saturday morning.