Mumbai: The Bombay High Court has decided not to tweak the existing expert-corporator imbalance in the Tree Authority. The body has five expert members, as against 15 corporators, which the court said is not ex facie absurd.
Activist Zoru Bhathena had petitioned the bench led by CJ Nandrajog seeking proper constitution of the Tree Authority as there was a disparity in the number of corporators and experts in the committee. He argued that there must be an equal number of both in the authority.
According to Bhathena, if the corporators are appointed in large numbers, compared to experts, then the former can gang up against the latter and allow cutting of trees.
The verdict comes as a major relief for the city civic body, which has over 20 applications pending, seeking permissions to chop down at least 5000 trees.
Having heard the contentions, CJ Nandrajog said, “It is evident that the ratio of the number of expert members vis-a-vis the other members cannot be absurd, but in the present case inclusion of five expert members, as against 15, is not ex facie absurd.”
“We cannot proceed on the premise that the corporators, while dealing with issues of conserving the environment by saving trees, would always decide against it.
Inclusion of experts in the TA is not intended for a tug of war between the corporators and the expert members,” CJ Nandrajog observed.
The bench further said that the functioning of the TA is to be made more effective not by increasing the voting power of the experts, but making them and their practical experience, a part of the decision making.
“The responsibility of the experts is, therefore, to guide the members of the TA in taking an informed decision,” CJ Nandrajog ruled. The judges further emphasised the need to conserve trees saying they are an ‘inalienable’ component of environment.
“Trees contribute to the environmental balance, particularly in terms of ambient air quality and provide succour and shelter to other living creatures. Thus, the object of preserving trees needs to be kept in mind while interpreting the provisions of the Tree Act,” CJ Nandrajog held.
The judges further said that the TA must pass a ‘reasoned’ order as the purpose for including the experts is that they give their inputs in writing. “The scientific input cannot be in the form of an oral suggestion. The TA must discuss the input of the experts for taking an informed decision.
And if the TA is to differ from the expert’s input, it must record reasons. If the scientific input is not even referred to in the decision making, then the purpose for which the expert members are included would be rendered meaningless,” CJ Nandrajog said in his orders.
According to activists, however, the ruling is tantamount to a green signal which is likely to lead to diminishing of the green cover in the city.
