Hyderabad: The claim by green activists that 3,100 trees would get chopped for the Strategic Road Development project is incorrect, a senior GHMC official has stated.
The official said the trees were at junctions where the flyovers were being planned and the possibility of translocation and re-plantation was being explored. Four NGOs, formed by the previous government, were studying the cost of translocation of the trees. Not a single tree inside KBR Park would be touched. Only the 4-km outer track will be acquired, he said.
Speaking to a member of the tree protection committee, the officer said, “There is no exact number yet of trees to be chopped. Earlier, the GHMC engineering wing estimated that 3,100 trees were at junctions where flyovers were planned. Now the tree protection committee is studying on translocation and other alternatives, it’s too early to say.”
A GHMC officer involved in the SRDP project confirmed, “Four NGOs formed by the erstwhile AP government are studying the matter. Issues like tree translocation, replantation are being looked into. The count is still on. I don’t know where the number 3,100 came from.”
Officials also confirmed that no land inside KBR Park was being acquired for flyovers, except for a portion of the outer walkway. This land which belongs to the HMDA is being transferred to GHMC.
