In a significant development for Bhopal's infrastructure, close to 1500 trees have been cut down by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) to make way for the Ayodhya bypass project. The felled trees are now a part of history, and their wood has been transported to a depot managed by the Bhopal Municipal Corporation (BMC).
Wood Deposited and Set for Public Auction
The substantial quantity of timber from the cleared trees is currently stored at the BMC depot located in the Chuna Bhatti area. BMC Commissioner Sanskriti Jain, in a conversation with the Times of India, confirmed the process. She stated that the logs from the Ayodhya bypass site are being deposited with the civic body, which will then sell them through a public auction.
"We float tenders, an auction takes place, and the woods are sold," Commissioner Jain explained. This is a standard procedure for the BMC to handle valuable timber from such large-scale tree removal exercises within the city.
Financial Arrangements and Compensatory Afforestation
The commissioner highlighted a key difference in the financial dealings for this specific project. Typically, when the BMC itself undertakes tree-cutting, as it is doing for the NHAI's NH-46 project, it charges a fee for the cutting service. Additionally, it levies a cost for the mandatory compensatory afforestation that must counterbalance the environmental loss.
However, in the case of the Ayodhya bypass, the NHAI has taken a different approach. The highway authority has informed the BMC that it will handle the compensatory afforestation on its own. Consequently, the BMC did not charge the fund typically associated with ensuring new trees are planted to replace the ones felled.
Project Impact and Civic Process
The removal of nearly 1500 trees underscores the scale of the Ayodhya bypass development and its immediate environmental footprint. While the project aims to improve connectivity and decongest traffic, the loss of a large green cover is a significant concern for the city's ecology.
The BMC's role now shifts to managing the aftermath by ensuring the harvested wood is disposed of transparently through auction, generating civic revenue. The responsibility for compensatory afforestation now rests squarely with the NHAI, which will be expected to plant a substantial number of trees elsewhere to mitigate the ecological impact of this large-scale felling in Bhopal.
