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The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is going to cut 7,909 tress -- 5,607 along NH-56 (Varanasi-Lucknow) and 2,302 along NH-233 (Varanasi-Azamgarh-Nepal border) -- for converting them into a four-lane high-speed highway. It had already swallowed greenery along the National Highway-II during the Golden Quadrangle project and reportedly failed to provide land to the forest department for re-plantation. Under the Varanasi project of the NHAI, as many as 5,982 trees were chopped off in the district when the Golden Quadrangle project was launched in 1999-2000. About 31.50 hectares of land was deforested during this process against which NHAI paid a compensation of INR 1.31 crore to the forest department.

However, the social forestry division of the forest department of Varanasi alleges that as the NHAI could not provide the land strip required for re-plantation, rows of trees could not be grown along NH-II in the district. Now, the process of converting the four-lane NH-II into six-lane is in progress between Varanasi and Aurangabad (Bihar) and 28 more trees have been cut.

Though NHAI had failed to provide land strip for re-plantation against the trees chopped off in 1999-2000, it now wants removal of 5,607 trees along NH-56 (Varanasi-Lucknow) and 2,302 along NH-233 (Varanasi-Azamgarh-Nepal border). The forest department records show that for the proposed felling of trees along NH-233, NHAI has deposited the compensation amount while for NH-56, the process is due.

Divisional forest officer SN Singh said, "As NHAI could not provide us the land strips along the NH-II, bringing green strips back there is impossible. If land strips are not made available for the forthcoming projects of two other highways, the department would search land at other sites for compensatory plantation, which is difficult in this district."

Contradicting Singh's claim, NHAI (Varanasi unit) project director Surya Prakash said, "The NHAI pays the compensation both for re-plantation and also against the land of forest area. We cannot be blamed for the failure of bringing green strips back along the widened highways."

As a tug-of-war between the two departments continues, the issue of damage to environment is emerging as a serious cause of concern. The DFO said, "We are facing a serious issue of environmental damage. Fully grown trees play key role in diluting pollutants left by vehicles moving on highways. Even after re-plantation, a tree takes time of 10-15 years to grow properly." The forest department can bring the green belt back along all these highways in the district in the case of availability of land strip, he added.

Moreover, the district is losing fully grown trees for the projects of many other departments. The forest department records reveal that for the construction of a railway bridge on the Varanasi-Audihar line, 630 trees have been cut recently while 15 trees were cut for laying transmission line of Powergrid Corporation. The UP Jal Nigam has also proposed to chop 1,763 trees under its project of laying drinking water supply line along NH-29 (Varanasi-Ghazipur-Gorakhpur).

Source-On Request