PIONEER EDGE NEWS SERVICE/Dehradun
Concerned citizens staged a demonstration named as “Kimadi Dakra in Danger” under the Paryavaran Bachao Andolan on Thursday. They raised concerns about the scheduled felling of 700 trees, lined along the stretch from from the Dakra area to Hathipaon and already marked for removal to make way for a four-lane road. They said that if things happened as planned, traffic volume towards the already overcrowded and overburdened Mussoorie would increase further. The participants said that the authorities are approving numerous projects which entail axing old tress, on one hand and celebrating Environment Day by planting saplings, on the other. “This is blatant hypocrisy,” one of the agitators said. The protest was held on June 4, the eve of Environment Day, to highlight this two-faced behaviour, they added.
They also said that the proposed road widening threatens not only hundreds of mature trees but also a rare heritage Gharaat—a traditional water mill powered solely by the kinetic energy of flowing streams. “This Gharaat requires no electricity, produces no pollution and represents a significant piece of our cultural and ecological heritage. Once it is lost, it is lost,” said an activist associated with the movement.
The concerned citizens said that soaring temperatures, drying streams, flash floods, landslides and extreme weather events have alarmingly become the “new normal.”
Members of the Citizens for Green Doon (CFGD) visited the area and spoke with locals who empathised with the cause of environment protection.
Vijay Bhatt, along with locals from Dakra, addressed the gathering and raised awareness about the importance of preserving the last remaining Gharaat in the city as well as the imperative of stopping tree- chopping on the pretext of development.
Many citizens from various walks of life joined the protest, voicing their concerns about the future of Dehradun.
