Citizens protest felling of 100-year-old tree for Rashtrapati Ashiyana project in Doon
PIONEER NEWS SERVICE | Dehradun
Various citizens groups protested outside the PWD office in Dehradun on Wednesday, expressing their profound disappointment and outrage over the felling of a 100-year-old toon tree (Toona ciliata) on Rajpur Road as part of the Rashtrapati Ashiyana project. The protesters and concerned citizens claimed that despite a formal letter submitted on May 5 to the PWD chief engineer and protests by citizens, authorities proceeded with the tree’s removal, ignoring pleas to preserve it. The member of Citizens for Green Doon (CFGD) Himanshu Arora said that the toon tree had a girth exceeding 300 inches and supported several bird species, insects and bees. It also played a role in improving air quality. He informed that CFGD in their letter to authorities concerned proposed reducing the width of the planned foot-over bridge from four metres to two metres and exploring alternative designs to avoid cutting the tree. The group offered to collaborate with architects to find a more sustainable plan but officials did not consider the suggestions, he said.
Arora said that the felling of the tree marked a loss for Dehradun. He said the tree regulated climate, improved air quality and supported biodiversity. Arora added that removing the tree to make space for a wider foot-over bridge showed poor planning and ignored the city’s natural balance. He criticised the prioritisation of tourism needs over public well-being. The protestors called for stricter tree preservation laws, environmental impact assessments for all development projects and greater public involvement in planning decisions. Those who participated in the protest included Ashish Garg, Ravi Chopra, Kamla Pant, Vijay Bhatt, Ira Singh, Raghvendra Nysadham, Himanshu Arora, Ruchi S Rao, Anish Lal and Ira Chauhan among others.
