MUMBAI: Over two lakh trees have been felled illegally in Maharashtra in the last four years and over 48,000 complaints have been filed in this regard in different parts of the state, Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray informed the state Legislative Council on Wednesday. The Chief Minister was replying to a starred question raised by Shiv Sena MLA Manisha Kayande.
In his written reply, Thackeray said, 2,84,171 trees were felled illegally in the last four years. Its value has been estimated at Rs 21.95 crore. At least 48,893 criminal cases have been registered during this period, of which 1,435 are registered as serious offences. The chief minister said the remaining cases were classified as mild offenses and many were resolved after talks between the officials and the accused persons.
He said that over a period of four years, 991 vehicles were allegedly used for illegal felling and transportation of trees. Thackeray holds the charge of the forest department after his cabinet colleague Sanjay Rathod resigned from the post in March 2021.
In a written reply to Kayande’s another starred question, Thackeray said, the Mumbai suburban district has lost 1.08 sq km of mangrove area between 2021 and 2019. This figure is reported in the recently published India State Forest Report 2021. Some efforts have been made for this. Plantation on the lost area. The area is 1,911.33 hectares, he said.
The Chief Minister said that 8,000 illegal constructions have also been demolished by the State Mangrove Cell.
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