Felling of Trees in Delhi

What is the issue?

• Protests have erupted in Delhi over the felling of over 16,000 trees in government redevelopment yards.
• Authorities argue that the numbers are exaggerated and in any case, they would plant more trees than are being felled.

What is the government policy?

• In India’s countryside, forest lands underwent diversion for “non-forest purposes”.
• These have been compensated for, through a series of laws.
• The Forest Conservation Act of 1980 was the foremost one.
• The policy culminated in the Compensatory Afforestation Fund (CAF) Act of 2016.
• It assumes that planting large number of trees would compensate for the loss.
• However, how effectively will this redress cutting down natural wilderness is uncertain.
• On the other hand, compensatory afforestation largely exists on paper.

Will planting new trees really help?

• Clearly, compensation is reduced to a matter of counting trees.
• But an old forest is a whole lot more than the sum of its trees.
• Plants, fungi, microbes, insects and animals are all part of a living jungle ecosystem.
• Recreating this community is not an easy task, as it takes decades.
• Also, soil with microorganisms and mycorrhiza inhabiting the humus takes 30,000 years to build up.

What are the governance issues?

• The sole agency for carrying out compensatory afforestation is the Indian Forest Department.
• Rewilding is possible, but it needs tools, knowledge and techniques.
• But, no Forest Department in India has any experience or track record of doing any ecological restoration work of any kind.
• It is also not taught to foresters in their training.

What is the case with Delhi?

• Authority - For compensatory afforestation, it is the Forest Department which implements the planting schemes.
• It is charged with compliance under the CAF Act.
• But, in a city like Delhi, the Forest Department is confused of what role to play.
• It is confused in the centre of power and with so many horticultural agencies competing for its natural turf.
• The Forest Department thus plays little role in managing the green areas of Delhi.
• This is the case even with the Central Ridge, which is nominally under its control.

• Afforestation - In Delhi, the land that is made available for afforestation is mostly least arable and degraded.
• Also, small plots are crammed with large number of saplings which are not even native trees.
• Clearly, they cannot be relied upon or sustained, once watering and care are withdrawn.
• Delhi is one of the cities with toxic air quality in the world.
• Given this, any development that adversely impacts Delhi’s air quality needs a reassessment.

Source: Indian Express