THE AAREY TRAGEDY: WHEN DEVELOPMENTS FAILS OUR NATURE Advocate Ms Pinny Pathak LAW CRITIQUE Mon, Oct 14, 2019, at ,11:24 AM In the year 2015, the Maharashtra State Government announced plans to construct the metro depot, where metro coaches will be parked, on an 81-acre plot of land in Aarey Colony. Authorities also intended to construct a labour camp for construction workers and a Centralised Operation Control center for the entire Mumbai Metro Network at Aarey Colony. The construction would require the felling of more than 2,000 trees in the area. This led environmental groups such as Vanashakti and Aarey Conservation Group (ACG) to file a petition in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) in January 2015 requesting that the Aarey Colony be protected as a No-Development Zone. Further on 5th December 2016, the Union Environment Ministry issued a notification declaring the area up to 4 km from the boundary of the Sanjay Gandhi National Park to be an eco-sensitive zone. The notification excluded 165 hectares of land in Aarey, in order to permit the construction of Line 3. However, the notification declared that the exclusion was sub-ordinate to any orders from the judiciary or the NGT. The NGT's Pune bench passed an order temporarily staying all construction activities in Aarey on 19th December 2016. On 5th January 2017, the NGT granted an exemption permitting the MMRC to construct a casting yard on a 3-hectare plot of land owned by the State Government in Aarey. A tribunal bench ordered the forest department to provide a detailed map of Aarey Colony and to declare whether any portion of the region had been identified as forests. In 1997, as part of a Supreme Court directive, State Governments had prepared a detailed map of urban forest cover. The forest department failed to provide the details at the next hearing, and on 17th February 2017, the NGT extended its stay on all construction activities up to 17th March 2017. On 29th March, the State Forest Department informed the NGT that 1,279.74 ha of land at Aarey had been used for non-forest activities since 1949, and therefore "cannot be declared a forest land because it is not a forest". The department clarified that although 1,114.74 ha of land had been declared as an eco-sensitive zone (ESZ) by the Union Environment Ministry on 5th December 2016, the notification excluded the land given to the MMRC and certain other areas. The department also stated that it would submit a list of survey numbers identifying Aarey as a non-forest area at the NGT's next hearing on 10 April. At the hearing on 10th April, the forest department stated that it was unable to locate its report on Aarey that would help prove that it was not "forest land", and requested an extension. The request was denied by the NGT. On 24th April, the Tribunal ordered the additional solicitor general to appear before it on 3rd May and clarify the MoEF's position on approval for Metro 3. Due to the issues surrounding the land at Aarey, Larsen & Toubro and Shanghai Tunnel Engineering Co., the consortium that was awarded the seventh package to carry out construction on the MIDC-Aarey Depot section of the line, exited the contract. The MMRC stated that the appointment of a new contractor would escalate the project cost by an addition ₹10 crores (US$1.4 million). The Court stated that it would determine if the cutting of nearly 5,000 trees for the project was necessary. On 18th February 2017, Mr. Fadnavis directed the MMRDA to consider constructing the depot at Kanjurmarg or Kalina. A few weeks later, MMRC officials stated that the proposed depot could not be built at Mumbai University land in Kalina because the available area was too small. The MMRC insisted that the depot should be built at Aarey, but proposed a new design which would allow the depot to be constructed on 25 hectares of land as compared to the 33 hectares required by the old design. The new design will reduce the number of trees to be cut by 1,000. In March 2017, Mr. E. Sreedharan wrote to Chief Minister Fadnavis requesting him to ensure clearance for the proposed metro depot at Aarey. Sreedharan wrote, "Metro projects are environmentally most friendly and setting up a crashed in Aarey is not going to be a threat either to the government or to the ecosystem. The main objection would be against cutting of trees, for which compensatory afforestation on a liberal scale can be insisted upon." According to reports in the media, the MMRC brought machinery to conduct soil testing work for constructing ramps in Aarey on 23rd March. However, local business owners protested the work, alleging that the NGT had stayed all construction activities in Aarey. The MMRC stated that the stay only applied to the construction of the car depot, and not the ramps. Due to the protests, contractors removed all machinery from the site on 25th March 2017. MMRC began soil testing at Aarey on 30th March 2017, under police protection. The work area was cordoned off and surrounded by 50 Mumbai Police personnel. On 16th April 2019, the Supreme Court rejected a petition filed the Aarey Conservation Group, a non-government organization, seeking an alternative site to construct the depot. The Court observed that the MMRC had already considered alternate options and deemed them unviable. A separate petition filed by the same NGO, which had been dismissed by the Bombay High Court on October 2018. Hours after the Bombay High Court overruled petitions challenging the felling of trees in Aarey Milk Colony, the Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Limited (MMRCL) has axed over 2000 trees in just 24 hours. The protestors were arrested on the ground of unlawful assembly. Thereafter the Hon’ble Supreme Court vide its order has stayed the cutting of trees. The question arises- Can “development” has to take over the environment? Can environmental issues and concerns be side-lined and completely negated? Can 2,185 trees, which took years to grow and be maintained, be really compensated by the planting of 461? Priority should be given to environmental issues and challenges faced today or for the development of a future that is distant? In a crowded and over the populous city like Mumbai, many areas get flooded/ waterlogged during heavy rains thereby causing great hardships to the people, trees come to our rescue at such time. Various research has shown that trees contribute to regulating river flows both during dry seasons and high rainfall events, thereby minimizing risks related to water scarcity and floods. Growing trees take water from the soil and release it into the atmosphere. Tree leaves also act as interceptors, catching falling rain, which then evaporates causing rain precipitation elsewhere — a process known as “evapotranspiration”. It is highly unfortunate that in the name of “development” and “developing city” limits and boundaries are not crossed they are crushed. No one is against “development” nor the protesters, media or the various environmental groups. But compromising and paying such a huge price for it is what they are against. Development is essential at the places where there isn’t any or is minimal and not at areas that have no space for further development. No doubt Mumbai has to be made Shangai but does the present condition allows the city of Mumbai to be so? Rather is the city of Mumbai ready to become one? Today all over the world, countries are trying to solve the problem of climate change. People like Greta Thunberg demanding immediate and necessary action to save the environment, they are questioning the role played by each and every country, their contribution towards protecting the environment. India must recognize that just by being signatories to the various Treaties and Conventions the clauses aren’t implemented, concerted action is required to be taken. Else we shall be proving Mr. Putin to be correct.