Maharashtra: Aaditya Thackeray, Rohit Pawar slam government over felling of 32,490 trees in Karjat

The axe has fallen on Karjatrsquos green cover with tree felling underway for a 3000 MW pumped storage hydro project that will see 32490 trees cut The move has triggered concerns among environmentalists over the impact on the regionrsquos rich biodiversity with Shiv Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray also slamming the government over the largescale loss of treesNCPSharad Pawar faction leader and MLA Rohit Pawar also criticised the government over the cutting of the trees in Karjat for a dam projectA letter by Range Forest Officer Karjat East on October 14 directed the immediate felling of 32490 trees for the proposed Saidongar I Karjat OffStream Open Loop Pumped Storage Project The project spans Pali Kotal Khalati Saidongar and Dhak villages in Karjat taluka According to official documents it requires the diversion of 233 hectares of forest land comprising 1970272 hectares of reserved forest 26066 hectares of private forest and 99068 hectares of protected forestAdvocate Kailash More associated with the Karjat Taluka Paryavaran Bachao Sangharsh Samiti which has been opposing the project said ldquoThe felling of 32490 trees has begun in this biodiversityrich region for the proposed Saidongar I Karjat pumped storage project At a time when Maharashtra is grappling with drought and the growing threat of climate change destroying a vast stretch of forest will only deepen the ecological crisis Countless birds wild animals and reptiles stand to lose their habitats Do the authorities have any regard for the devastating environmental consequences of this destructionrdquoEnvironmentalists fear that the loss of tree cover could affect wildlife habitats disrupt ecological balance and further fragment forest areasOfficials from forest department told this newspaper that the project has received central and statelevel clearancesIn a post on X Shiv Sena UBT leader Aaditya Thackeray said ldquoIn the Karjat taluka the indiscriminate felling of thousands of trees for the hydroelectric project of Gujaratrsquos lsquoTorrent Powerrsquo company is blatantly underway Wiping out the rich natural bounty in the lsquoSaydongarrsquo area and trampling the opposition of locals and environmentalists underfoot under whose blessings is this slaughter proceedingrdquoIn his detailed X post NCPSP leader Rohit Pawar said that this is not merely treefelling it is the end of an entire ecosystem and humanity will have to bear its grave consequences in the future ldquoThis dense forest is the rightful home to the barking deer mdash our state animal mdash along with many other animals The valuable medicinal plants rare insects and the distinctive biodiversity that adorns this Sahyadri ridge are on the path to permanent destruction due to this senseless massacre And as if that werenrsquot enough the powerful blasts for tunneling through the mountains for this project will weaken entire sections of the hills posing a risk of a repeat of the Malin or Irshalwadi disasters A naturally beautiful area like Karjat will see its environmental equilibrium disrupted if its forest wealth is destroyed and the very survival of the local Adivasi communities will become a serious issuerdquoBollywood speaks outRicha ChadhaActress Richa Chadha posted a video of Mumbai AQI on X and said ldquoDear citizens of Mumbai What are you afraid of You got literal poop in drinking water and poison in the air Poison kills life whatrsquos worse than death Why does the richest civic body in the world mybmc think they can GET AWAY by doing this to youTherersquos like 3 CMs what is the plan of action for air Yoursquove always had terrible roads now you have shit air and water too Why do you pay so much tax to die via slow poisoningMumbai contributes so much tax to the centre what does it get in return 7500 more trees are supposed to be cut Why should a handful of environmentalists be constantly raising their voice for you Are you cowards Why have you outsourced all courage to the youngAsk questions raise your voice You donrsquot deserve thisrdquo