The Bombay High Court has scheduled a final hearing in ten days on petitions challenging tree felling and other infrastructure works proposed for the Nashik Kumbh Mela, including a planned Sadhugram and exhibition centre in the Tapovan area.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Mahesh Chandra Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna heard the petitions on Thursday. The Nashik Municipal Corporation told the court that it was seeking the lifting of a stay imposed by the National Green Tribunal on the decision to cut thousands of trees for the proposed facilities.
The municipal corporation and the Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Authority also informed the court that separate petitions had raised objections to other works being undertaken for the religious gathering. The authorities requested an early hearing, saying the projects had to be completed within fixed timelines for the Kumbh Mela.
The court directed all parties to submit their positions before the matter is taken up again. It clarified that the petitions would be heard after ten days, rather than granting the authorities an immediate hearing.
The dispute centres on the proposed Sadhugram and exhibition centre, identified in the proceedings as the MICE Hub, in Tapovan. According to the municipal corporation’s submission, tree cutting is being carried out only after obtaining permission from the relevant authority. The civic body also said that some trees would have to be removed to widen roads in the area.
The petition filed by the Nashik-Trimbakeshwar Kumbh Authority said the scale of the upcoming event required a major transformation of Nashik’s urban infrastructure. The authority has estimated that 12 crore people could visit the city for the Kumbh Mela. The report did not provide a separate project-wise timeline, tree count or cost for the proposed facilities.
The petitions place the proposed event infrastructure against the question of how environmental permissions, road expansion and temporary or permanent construction should be handled in a city preparing for a large influx of visitors. However, the court has not yet issued a final ruling on whether the stay imposed by the National Green Tribunal should be lifted.
The next hearing is scheduled after ten days, by which time the municipal corporation, the Kumbh Authority and the other parties are required to place their submissions before the Bombay High Court.
