NHAI submits three options for four-laning on Koradi Road

NAGPUR: Under sharp criticism for ignoring planting of trees to compensate for the chopped ones for road widening, the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) gave Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) three options for four-laning between Mankapur Square and Mental Hospital Square on Koradi Road.
Looking into the poor track record of NHAI in planting trees, the High Court had directed the agency to hold a meeting with NMC on March 19.A PIL, filed by city-based NGO Nature Conservation Association (NCA), is being heard in the high court.
Accordingly, a meeting between NHAI officials and municipal commissioner Shyam Wardhane was held on March 28. The same day Wardhane even visited the site where NHAI wants to fell 32 neem trees, which are over 100-year-old, for four-laning.
Post meeting, between NHAI and NMC, the former gave three options to the civic body and the same were submitted before the court on Wednesday. The options include granting permission for cutting 32 trees so that four-laning is done along with service road or permission for cutting 16 trees by dropping provision of service road on both sides with proper barricading for traffic safety or no trees to be cut and the proposed four-laning on the stretch be dropped.
The NHAI requested the NMC to decide on any one of the options. Talking to TOI, Wardhane said he has prepared a plan that will save trees and pave way for road also. "I got in touch with the architect who planned city road widening under Integrated Road Development Project (IRDP). Under IRDP, many trees were saved despite road widening," said Wardhane.
Wardhane added he too is pained to see that huge neem trees will be felled. "We are doing injustice to our future generation by degrading the environment. I feel that by reducing the size of road median, at least 24 trees could be saved. I will submit the plan to NHAI in a day or two," Wardhane said.
Last year, NHAI felled 414 trees till Koradi Road and was supposed to plant 2,000 trees, but not a single tree was planted. Ideally, looking into the massive pollution from Koradi and Khaparkheda power plants and vehicle pollution, trees need to planted on both sides of the road, but amusingly NHAI wants to plant them in Jamtha outside the NMC limits.
NHAI'S ROADMAP
Allow cutting of 32 trees so that four-laning is done along with service road
Permit cutting of 16 trees by dropping provision of service road on both sides with proper barricading for traffic safety
No trees to be cut and the proposed four-lanning on the stretch be dropped