Of the 12 proposals placed by urban local bodies for cutting/transplantation of trees, none were cleared in the first meeting of the Maharashtra State Tree Authority, held on January 17. A standard operating procedure (SOP) has been prepared, wherein, the agencies that want to cut or transplant trees will have to present live Google Map location and give out details like the name, age, species and status of the tree (to be cut/transplanted/retained).

The proposals included 305 trees to be cut for the MMRDA’s Worli-Sewri connector project, 518 trees to be cut for the construction of a hospital in Kandivli, many trees for the widening of Jogeshwari-Vikhroli Link Road (JVLR), among other projects, including the metro. The first meeting of the state Tree Authority was held under the chairmanship of the state principal secretary, environment and climate change, through video conferencing.