Forest dept ignores HC’s heritage tag order for Himayat Bagh trees

26 April 2022

Aurangabad: Even though the Aurangabad bench of the Bombay high court had, almost a month ago, asked the forest department to give heritage tag to the trees at Himayat Bagh, the authorities concerned have allegedly failed to swing into action.

Notably, the two-member bench of Justice S V Gangapurwala and Justice S G Dige had categorically said that the official process concerned shall be immediately initiated.

As per the amended Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Preservation and Protection of Trees Act, 1975, any tree that is more than 50-year-old must receive the heritage tag. Himayat Bagh, the iconic Mughal-era garden, has many old trees are awaiting the ‘heritage’ status in order to have scientific conservation.

When contacted, deputy conservator of forests Arun Patil said the forest department has established communication with the Aurangabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) for carrying out the necessary exercise. “We expect the local civic body to complete necessary formalities as it is one of the owners of land on which Himayat Bagh is situated,” he said.

However, conservationists have expressed sharp reactions over the forest department allegedly passing on the entire responsibility of the desired work to the AMC.

“We expect all authorities including the forest department, AMC and Vasantrao Naik Marathwada Agricultural University to join hands for giving heritage tag to the trees at Himayat Bagh. These authorities have combined stake over the historic place and must act together instead of passing the buck,” conservationist Milind Giridhari said.

He also underlined the need for immediate chemical treatment for many old trees at Himayat Bagh. “Many old trees are uprooting due to lack of attention. The tree-cover and biodiversity at the Mughal-era garden is very unique and must be protected with swift measures,” he said.