Delhi High Court: Can sapling replace grown-up tree?

"How could a sapling replace a fully grown-up tree?" the Delhi High Court on Wednesday asked while observing that felling as many as 16,500 trees to build multi-storey accommodation for the proposed redevelopment of six South Delhi colonies was akin to leaving the city to die.

The high court prohibited the authorities from cutting down or taking away trees till July 26, that is the next date of hearing on a plea against felling of trees for housing projects and also asked whether any environmental impact assessment was carried out before initiating the work.

"If Delhi needs that they (buildings) be dismantled, they will be dismantled. You can't leave the city to die like this," a bench of Acting Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice C Hari Shankar said.

It also asked why everyone needs to be given space in the Lutyens' Delhi when the peripherals of the National Capital have so much of vacant land and added that "The mantra is decongestion". The court said that the authorities should develop colonies like Narela.

Taking note of a submission that Delhi was running out of groundwater, the court asked the central and the city governments how they propose to water the saplings which are going to replace fully grown trees under the compensatory afforestation policy.

"The Delhi government shall explain how a fully-grown tree could be equated with 10 saplings? How long will a sapling take to grow as a tree? Delhi was earlier known for its bird population," the bench said.

It also questioned the Centre on its redevelopment scheme, asking how permission was given to change a two-storeyed building, meant for two families, into an eight-storey building.

"What do you mean by redevelopment. This is your scheme. Replacing a two-storey building with an eight-floor building, this is what you call redevelopment," the bench said.

"From where do you get water for such eight-floor buildings? What amount of garbage will be generated? Where is parking and what about air pollution? You don't apply your mind to planning," the bench said.

The counsel, appearing for the National Buildings Construction Corporation (NBCC), tasked with redeveloping half a dozen south Delhi colonies, claimed that no garbage was going out of the construction site.

The court was also of the opinion that the construction was an impediment for ambulances and patients in reaching the two super speciality hospitals — AIIMS and Safdarjung — in the area.

"There will be a traffic jam at the main gate of the colonies. Two major hospitals are at the intersection. How will people reach AIIMS and Safdarjung hospital? You must have done an Environment Impact Assessment. Show it to us," it said.

It also sought to know the density of the area and said that after laying infrastructure including road, water, electricity, garbage system, macro-level planning is done.

The court asked the DDA to place before it all the schemes of redevelopment. It said why everyone needs to be given space in the Lutyen's Delhi when the peripherals of Delhi have so much vacant land and added, "the mantra is decongestion".