The hills are alive, but for how long?

Construction of protective wall to conserve forest moving at snail's pace; encroachers have field day

At a time when every inch of green cover matters, the lackadaisical attitude of Pune's civic officials and forest department to protect forestland in the city comes as a shocker. This despite the fact that it's been over a year since the PMC has allocated Rs 10 crore to erect boundary walls around Taljai Hills and Vetal Hills to protect the forest.

While each wall is approximately eight km long, only 2.4 km of it has been constructed surrounding each hill.

With only six metres of work being completed every day on an average, it's nearly impossible to meet the December 2009 deadline.u00a0u00a0

Lethargic pace
The civic administration has drawn severe criticism for this lethargic pace. "The compound wall is extremely crucial. Already a large part of this land has been encroached upon and the green cover in the city is fast depleting. Unfortunately, there is not enough political will to stop this menace," said Hrishikesh Talwalkar, founder of Aryanyawak, a group that promotes environment conservation in the city.

Dumping ground
According to Prakash Gole, founder, Ecological Society of India, the growing population and construction in nearby areas pose a direct threat to the hills. "The hills act as the lungs of the city. Moreover, they also have historic value. It's imperative to protect them," he said.

"What's worse is that encroachers use the hills as a dumping ground further deteriorating it," he added.