Meja Urja Nigam Pvt Ltd (MUNPL) has told the National Green Tribunal that "baseless" allegations had been levelled against it regarding the illegal cutting of around one lakh trees for its upcoming Obra 'D' Thermal Power Station.
Earlier, a plea in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) alleged that around one lakh trees were expected to be illegally felled for establishing the sanctioned project in Uttar Pradesh's Sonbhadra district. This posed a significant threat to the environment, it claimed.
MUNPL, a joint venture between the Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Utpadan Nigam and NTPC Ltd, in its reply to the tribunal said that the project was still in its preliminary stages and the General Layout Plan (GLP) regarding it was yet to be finalised.
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"The primary marking, numbering and counting work of trees for deforestation is under process. Moreover, the exact number of trees that will be cut or fallen shall only be determined once the GLP is finalised," the reply dated November 13 said.
It said once the GLP was finalised, all requisite permissions and no objection certificates (NOCs) for cutting trees would be obtained from the statutory authorities concerned.
"It is essential to note that MUNPL, being a public entity, is fully committed to following all laws and regulations and has not engaged in any illegal activities as alleged," the report said.
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It said that the allegations against it were "baseless, apprehensive and raised falsely".
Meanwhile, the Lucknow regional office of the Union Ministry of Environment, Forests and Climate Change also filed a separate reply underlining that the ministry only dealt with the broader issues of policy and regulation.
"With regards to the felling of trees, it is submitted that the protection and management of forests is primarily the responsibility of state governments /union territory administrations," the ministry's report said.
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