Tree officer in jail, HC orders new appointment

Court says tree census should not suffer; also orders new Tree Authority

Court says tree census should not suffer; also orders new Tree Authority

After the suspension of rape accused garden superintendent (trees) Ashok Ghorpade, the Bombay High Court wants an official in place to oversee the work of tree census in the city and complete it in time.

The high court has ordered the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to appoint someone to the post of Tree Officer in the Garden Department following Ghorpade's suspension.

The directive was given by Justices D Y Chandrachud and Anup Mohta, who also ordered the reconstruction of the present body of the Tree Authority.u00a0

The high court also asked senior councillor Kumbhakeni to present a report before the court in the next two weeks.

The high court will take decision after studying the report.

The PMC had issued Ghorpade's suspension order on November 22, two weeks after his arrest on November 8 on charges of molestation and rape of woman from Bibwewadi.

Ghorpade was in police custody till November 15, and was later shifted to Yerawada Central Prison, upon being granted magisterial custody.

The high court directive came during a hearing of a writ filed by environmentalists Juneja Singh and Vinod Jain.

The court also issued an order stating trees should be replanted on the same plot instead of doing it elsewhere.
Jain said that Ghorpade's) post of garden superintendent (tree officer) was specially created by the PMC administration.

"PMC still does not have a tree officer, which is a post reserved for a state level officer from the Forest Department," Jain said. "Earlier, Balasaheb Jagtap was working on behalf of the Forest Department in the PMC Garden Department."

PMC lawyer Advocate Sadhana Mahashabde said that though the civic body did not have an official tree officer, Garden Chief Superintendent Naresh Zurmure and Deputy Commissioner (Gardens) Bhanudas Mane could work as tree officers.

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