On the day the Supreme Court refused to intervene in the UP government’s drive to erect statues of Mayawati and other Dalit leaders at a Noida park, the Union Environment and Forests Ministry sent a team to probe alleged violations in the state government-promoted structure over 33 hectares in the area.

The team, led by a senior Indian Forest Service officer, found that 6,000 trees have been felled for the project. Moreover, the Uttar Pradesh government also gave a go-by to an Environment Impact Assessment, mandatory for a project of this size.

Environment Impact Assessments are required for all projects bigger than 20,000 square metres. It is also required under a higher Grade-A category for any project to be built within 10 kilometres of a protected area — in this case, the structures are a stone’s throw away from the Okhla bird sanctuary.

“The Home Minister had called to enquire on the project’s status and whether it had obtained various clearances,” Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh told Newsline. “We have also received several complaints on the issue and have thus launched an investigation.

“I am now waiting for the report to come in.”

The state government had given the green signal to fell trees for the project that dominates the view on both sides of the Atta Market flyover in Noida. But the high density of trees — 6,000 over 33 hectares — means the area was a deemed forest. “In Uttar Pradesh, if there are 50 trees per hectare, it is classified as forest area,” a senior member of the ministry team said.

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