Gurgaon: A Punjab and Haryana high court order in April has resulted in hundreds of trees being spared. The order barring tree felling in Haryana without its prior approval has led to a review of tree-cutting proposals for the Gurgaon Metro project.
Officials said a review was carried out on June 13 aimed at “minimising tree loss and identifying trees” that could be preserved without affecting construction. The April 1 order has hit the Gurgaon Metro project now. While permission was earlier granted to fell around 18,000 trees, the process was subsequently halted after 13,000 trees were felled following the court’s intervention.
Recently, metro authorities sought permission to fell 484 trees for the project. However, permission was granted for the felling of 439 trees following a survey by the Haryana forest department, while 45 trees were found to be avoidable and retained. In another instance, a proposal to cut around 536 trees was withheld by the forest department, citing the HC order.
Divisional forest officer Surender Dangi told TOI, “The exercise resulted in 45 trees being saved and a separate proposal involving around 536 trees being dropped altogether. The survey was focused on leaves of trees which are not necessary to fall. Also, the 536 trees proposal was declined by stating that the permission needs to be obtained from HC.”
Environmentalists say the court order has compelled agencies to reassess project plans and explore alternatives before seeking permission for large-scale tree felling. Forest analyst Chetan Agarwal TOI, “It is heartening that the forest department is evaluating proposals for tree felling to assess how essential it is to cut the trees and in this case they have been able to save 10% of the trees sought to be removed.”
In April, the HC, while hearing a PIL related to the Zirakpur-Panchkula bypass project, directed that no trees be felled anywhere in Haryana without its approval. Citing concerns over the state’s shrinking green cover, the court brought all major tree-felling proposals under judicial scrutiny. During the hearing, the bench made it clear that no work leading to tree felling would be permitted. “No cutting of trees would be done till further orders,” it said, adding that any violation would invite contempt.
It is important to note that more than 12,500 trees were felled across the city over a one-year period, according to a joint committee compliance report submitted before National Green Tribunal NGT. Data submitted for the period between Nov 1, 2024 and Nov 6, 2025 shows that 389 permissions were granted for felling 17,852 trees. Of these, 12,587 trees were actually cut. Under compensatory plantation norms, agencies were required to plant 1,19,232 saplings against the trees felled. However, 96,750 saplings were planted, leaving a shortfall of 22,482 plants, roughly one in every five saplings mandated, Haryana forest department data shows.
The data comes amid repeated clearances of mature trees in the city for road and metro projects. Around 5,000 trees were felled in 2017 for flyovers and underpasses along NH8, followed by permission to cut nearly 10,000 trees in 2018 for widening of Sohna Road. More recently, 344 trees were approved for removal between sectors 27 and 43, with additional trees cleared along highway stretches in Gurgaon and Rewari forest divisions.
An RTI response also showed that while authorities approved felling of over 500 trees across projects, only 124 were transplanted and compensatory plantation for nearly 3,800 trees remained pending. The state said compensatory afforestation is being carried out near Kundli-Manesar-Palwal Expressway for the metro project, where around 30,000 trees are being planted.
