NAVI MUMBAI, March 2 -- Hundreds of Navi Mumbai residents poured into Palm Beach Road on Sunday and formed a human chain to register their protest against the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation's (NMMC) plan to cut down/ transplant 440 trees to make way for a vehicular underpass in Sanpada. Dense tree cover along the Palm Beach Road acts as a crucial natural pollution barrier, said Shrikant Patki, convenor, Palm Beach Greens Forum. "Morning Air Quality Index (AQI) levels here often hit 300-350. Many people have stopped going for morning walks due to coughing and respiratory issues. Cutting hundreds of trees in such conditions is a direct public health risk," Patki told Hindustan Times. The proposed underpass near sector 19, which received the Bombay High Court's nod in December 2025, aims to eliminate chronic traffic snarls and accidents at Moraj Circle - Sanpada's primary access point to Palm Beach Road. According to the NMMC, prolonged vehicular idling at the junction contributes heavily to local emissions. Residents were outraged after the NMMC recently put up notices in the area saying 119 trees would be axed for the underpass, while another 321 trees would be transplanted. "The notices were put up just before a long weekend, allowing barely a week for objections. The process, it seems, was designed to limit public participation and prevent meaningful opposition," Patki alleged. Several citizen's groups participated in Sunday's protest, including NatConnect Foundation, Save Belapur Hills, Human Chain Online, Jyesth Nagrik Sanstha, and Parsik Greens. Protesters held placards with slogans like "No Trees, No Future," "Ped Jiyenge Toh Hum Jiyenge," and "Relocation? I am Not a Sofa." Navi Mumbai is already short of the recommended green cover of three trees per person, and further loss of 440 mature trees is "unimaginable", said BN Kumar, director, NatConnect Foundation. Vishnu Joshi, activist and resident of Parsik Greens, emphasised that transplanting mature trees was an ineffective compromise. "Trees take 10-12 years to reach their full capacity for providing oxygen and ecological benefits. Planting saplings cannot compensate for the loss of thriving trees," Joshi said. Instead of an underpass, residents want an elevated corridor. BN Kumar said they were working with experts to find a viable alternative. "We propose extending the existing road-over-bridge across the trans-harbour railway tracks between Vashi and Sanpada, taking it up to the Moraj traffic island," Kumar explained. "It can begin ahead of the traffic signal and merge with the existing structure. This can solve congestion without destroying trees." The NMMC has called for objections and suggestions regarding the tree-felling and transplantation, and suitable action will be taken only after hearings, assured Deputy Municipal Commissioner Smita Kale....