CUTTACK: The State government on Tuesday informed the Orissa High Court that the Forest department had accorded permission for “conversion and disposal” of trees coming under MLA colony project area in the Capital City.
The project has been planned over a sprawling area of 17.17 acre at Bhouma Nagar (Unit IV) at a cost of Rs 549.41 crore. In a counter affidavit to a PIL, Deputy Director Estate of General Administration department Itishree Rout said the Forest department has accorded permission for “conversion and disposal of 870 trees for utilisation of land for public work subject to plantation of 8,700 plants in the available space or to deposit `68 lakh as per plantation cost norm”.
Accordingly, the Odisha Bridge Construction Corporation (OBCC), the nodal agency for the construction of the project has deposited the amount with the Divisional Forest Officer (City Forest Division). In the affidavit, Rout further stated that 550 of the 870 trees coming under the project will be relocated to other parts of the capital.
Jayanti Das (60), a Cuttack-based social activist filed the petition on Wednesday seeking intervention against the felling of hundreds of trees for the construction of the multi-storey building as residential quarters for the MLAs. Advocate BK Ragada appeared on the petitioner’s behalf.
According to the affidavit 400 trees will be relocated along a one-km stretch of road near the Utkal Hospital at Niladri Vihar. While the Buddha Park at Lumbini Vihar has been identified for relocation of 100 trees and another 50 trees will be relocated to Guru Kelucharan Park in VSS Nagar.
The division bench of Chief Justice S Muralidhar and Justice RK Pattanaik fixed September 7 for hearing on the matter along with the rejoinder by the petitioner counsel. The bench expected submission of the rejoinder within two weeks.
The affidavit stated that the construction of 195 Type VI and 105 Type VII quarters has been planned under the multi-storey MLA colony project at a cost of `274.41 crore and `275 crore respectively.
The departments after a joint enumeration had listed 870 trees of 51 species coming under the project. Since the plan has not been finalised, the site will be revisited to retain major trees, Rout stated in the affidavit.