India, Sept. 13 -- In a significant judgment, the Bombay high court on Tuesday ordered compensatory afforestation to be done before mangroves or trees were cut for infra projects. It also ordered transparency in the process, directing all the details of the cutting and replacing to be put up on a website that was accessible to the public.

The case pertained to MMRDA's Metro Line 5. On Tuesday, the planning authority told the court that it planned to cut 26 mangroves for the Kasheli depot of Metro Line-5 (Thane-Bhiwandi-Kalyan) even though it had been given permission for 70 from the relevant authorities. It submitted that the implementation of the 24.90-km Metro corridor was vital for the growing transportation needs of Mumbai. Since the...