Fresh on the heels of the row that erupted in south Delhi over the felling of over 16,000 trees for a housing project, Gurgaon is also facing a mass felling of trees in the Old Gurgaon area. On Saturday, activists and residents protesting the proposed tree-felling gathered at Atul Kataria Chowk in Sector 17, raising slogans, hugging trees, and pledging to not let the authorities cut them. A flyover and underpass has been proposed at the Atul Kataria Chowk to de-congest traffic at the busy intersection. The project will mean that as many as 1,300 trees in the area will have to be cut. While the authorities have stated they will plant saplings in lieu of the cut trees, activists from the city say that is not enough. Anindita Kar Roy, one of the organisers of Saturday’s protest , said, “I did not invest in this city just for the offices and buildings. I did it for the greenery as well. As residents, we all have the responsibility to protect the green cover in Gurgaon. Some of these trees are 50-60 years old. How can they cut them and plant saplings as compensation?”The protesters formed a human chain around the trees that have been earmarked for fellingThe protesters – over 50 in number – gathered at the crossing before forming a human chain around the trees that have been earmarked for felling. The trees in question are Khejri trees, which inspired the original Chipko Movement in the 1970s and according to activists, they are one of the rare varieties that give oxygen all day long. Surinder Fursani, a member of the Bishnoi community , said, “We worship these Khejri trees. We will not let them cut these. Our community has been working to protect the trees and animals for centuries now. Even here, we are ready to guard these trees 24x7. The government should look to transplant them somewhere else instead of cutting them.”The protesters hugged the trees in a throwback to the Chipko Movement, a forest conservation movement to save trees that started in the ’70s. Uttarakhand-based green activist Ramesh Kumar Mumukshu, who has been part of the Chipko Movement for almost 30 years, was at the protes. He said, “It is essential that these trees be saved. At a time when we should plant more trees and increase green cover in our cities, places like Gurgaon are doing the opposite.”

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