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Judgment
1.This is an application filed under Section 14 of the National Green Tribunal Act 2010, to restrain respondent Nos.1 and 2, the Commissioner, Greater Chennai Corporation and Assistant Engineer, Greater Chennai Corporation respectively, from felling 5 trees standing in Bazaar Road, Collector Nagar, Anna Nagar West Extension , Chennai-101 without necessary permissions required under law.
The case of the applicant is that at the instance of respondent No.3, there is an idea to cut all the 5 trees, which are healthy and are not causing any danger to the public or property and respondent Nos. 1 and 2 are entitled to grant permit to cut the trees only as provided under Section 259 (1) of Chapter XI of Chennai City Municipal Corporation Act, 1919 and therefore, respondent Nos.1 and 2 are to be restrained from cutting the trees.
Though sufficient opportunity was given, respondent No.3 did not file the reply so far.
Learned counsel appearing for respondent Nos.1 and 2 filed the reply stating that request from respondent No.3 dated 28.10.2015 and 21.07.2016 were received to remove the trees, temple, shops, auto stand, flag post and erection of their compound, which cause hindrance to the access to their building. The Field officers of the Corporation, on inspection found that hindrance is caused by the flag post and they removed the flag post and put up a note to the Regional Deputy Commissioner of the Corporation to permit to remove two trees instead of four trees.
It is further stated that in a similar case, Application No.122 of 2016 was filed by one Srikanth with a prayer to direct respondent No.1 to take necessary steps to ensure that respondent No.2 is restrained from cutting down a 5 year old peepul tree situated at Bhimanna Garden Road, Alwarpet, Chennai and to direct respondent Nos.1 and 2 to preserve the greenery in the said locality. The Tribunal by order dated 02.09.2016 directed that while putting up construction, respondent No.2 shall take all necessary steps to see that the root system of the tree is not damaged and there shall not be any concretization around the base of the tree.
Respondent Nos.1 and 2 submitted that on further inspection, it was found that the trees are existing for the past 20 years and they are very healthy and are not of any danger to the public or property. Respondent No.3 constructed a building only recently and kept the entrance of the building in the side where the trees are in existence and in such circumstances, the healthy trees can not be cut.
In view of the said submissions of respondent Nos.1 and 2 that the trees are healthy and would not be permitted to be cut and in any case the trees could be cut only in accordance with Section 259 (1) of Chapter XI of Chennai City Municipal Corporation Act, 1919, the learned counsel appearing for the applicant submitted that recording the submissions of respondent Nos. 1 and 2, the application be disposed.
Accordingly, recording the submissions of respondent Nos. 1 and 2 that the disputed trees are all healthy and will not cause any danger to the public or the property and therefore will not be permitted to be cut, the application is disposed of with no order as to costs.