Jaipur, Dec. 6 -- The state government is planning to increase the fine for chopping a Khejri tree ten-times and also mandating to plant ten more trees for each being chopped by various industrial units to set up solar projects. Law minister Jogaram Patel said that this amendment will now mandate a prior approval to uproot a Khejri tree. "Khejri is a lifeline for the desert areas. But it has been declining. There are many areas in Rajasthan where these trees are being chopped illegally. The Rajasthan government is serious about the matter. The government is making some amendments in the Rajasthan Land Revenue Act 1956 and Rajasthan Tenancy Act 1955 to come up with a stringent policy to protect these trees." He added: "Under, the latest policy fines will also be increased ten times to chop a Khejri tree." According to the officials, the government will impose a penalty up to Rs.2,000 for chopping a Khejri tree while the industry owners will also have to plant at least 10 Khejri trees for each tree they chop to install any government or private projects. Currently, to save the Khejri trees, Rajasthan Land Revenue Act, protects the lands which might not be managed by the forest authority but have the tree cover. In those lands, a person needs prior approval from the government to chop a Khejri tree. Meanwhile, under the Tenancy Act, the illegal chopping of Khejri tree also brings a Rs.100 fine - an amount which is often criticised by the conservationists who had been demanding to increase the amount. "The amendments are being made as per the demands of various conservationists. We want to ensure that no Khejri tree is chopped illegally and uprooting one tree in unavoidable circumstances should also be compensated with ten more Khejri trees. The draft amendments will also be presented before the cabinet soon for an approval," said the law minister. The illegal felling of Khejri, which is considered to be the state tree of Rajasthan, has recently sparked several protests in Western Rajasthan. In August, a massive protest was sparked in Barmer where a solar power company was accused of chopping the trees illegally. Villagers from Bariyara and Khodal in Sheo subdivision staged a sit-in for over four months, alleging large-scale destruction of Khejri trees. Sheo MLA Ravindra Singh Bhati also joined the protest and spent an entire night on August 4 at the site. The controversy intensified after videos circulated on social media showed Khejri trees being uprooted with JCB machines and loaded onto tractors. Locals claimed the felled trees were set on fire by officials of the company to erase evidence. Villagers alleged that the construction of solar plants blocked their traditional pathways to fields, forcing them to take 15 km detours, and that the project has encroached upon Khadeen land - a unique desert ecosystem vital for rainwater harvesting, wildlife, and local greenery. In a symbolic Raksha Bandhan gesture on August 9, Independent Sheo MLA Ravindra Singh Bhati tied a Rakhi to a Khejri tree, urging women to treat trees as brothers to protect the ecosystem....