New Delhi, March 1 -- The Union government has turned down a suggestion to create a new authority for protecting trees at the central and state levels - a proposal that included determining a tree's value before a decision is taken to fell it for a development project --- and has instead recommended to the Supreme Court that such matters be decided by the states.
In a submission on February 8, the Union ministry of environment, forests and climate change (MoEFCC) responded to a host of suggestions made by a seven-member, Supreme Court-appointed expert committee headed by wildlife expert and former chairman of the Wildlife Trust of India MK Ranjitsinh Jhala.
The committee was directed by the top court in March 2021 to examine steps for con...