Mumbai: Citizens' groups from Mumbai have joined counterparts in Pune, Nashik, Nagpur, and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar in the campaign against the felling of around 1700 trees in the Tapovan forest in Nashik city to create tent facilities for the Simhastha Kumbh Mela in October 2026.
The groups have filed a representation with the state government, the Tree Authority, and the Nashik Municipal Commissioner, raising concerns about non-compliance with the statutory procedure in the cutting of the trees.
The trees are proposed to be cut down to create a 'Sadhu Gram' – a tent city for members of Hindu religious orders or akhadas who will attend the festival that will be held between October 2026 and July 2028. The Simhastha Kumbh Mela, held once in twelve years, will be organised on the banks of the Godavari river in Nashik. The proposed site for the tent city is Tapovan, a rocky wooded area associated with Lord Ram, that has traditionally been used as a temporary camp by the sadhus during the festival. The government plans to create a planned tent city at the site.
A public notice published on November 20, said that around 1,700 trees across survey numbers 326 to 333 are likely to be affected by the project. According to the environment activists, three other sites identified earlier for the project have been occupied by parking spaces and residential colonies. Niranjan Deshpande, an advocate and environmental activist, who drafted the representation, said that the law requires notices to be affixed on the trees, geo-tagging and inspection by a competent committee with subject-matter experts, and mandatory reference to the Tree Authority when more than 200 trees are involved, all of which appear to have been bypassed.
Despande said that the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees Act, 1975 is a beneficial legislation and must be implemented strictly. Citizens have demanded longer timelines for objections, up to three months for decision-making, a functional appellate mechanism, and a publicly accessible monthly report on trees saved, cut, or transplanted. A public hearing was held on November 24. The representation demanded that all tree cutting be halted immediately until the decision of the hearing is formally communicated to the public.
Rakesh Gholap, member of Muse Foundation, an environmental and human rights advocacy from Thane, who signed the representation, said that the government should look for alternate sites for the project. “The trees at the site are hundreds of years old and are heritage trees. The project should be moved to a site where so many trees do not have to be destroyed. As citizens, we need to take a stand that green spaces cannot be destroyed for construction. We need development, but not in this way. As Mumbaikars, we support the campaign to save the trees. We protested when trees were cut at Aarey,” said Gholap who added that Thane is witnessing destruction of its green spaces. "At Koshet, along the Thane creek, mangroves have been destroyed systematically and the authorities have been ignoring complaints from citizens."
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