Chopped trees lie at the Madhu Sudan park in Rourkela. Picture by Uttam Kumar Pal

Rourkela, July 1: Residents of Koel Nagar today opposed the decision of the municipal authorities to cut trees on the Madhu Sudan park premises in the city.

They said that despite their repeated complaints to government officials, no steps have been taken.

“We have met the officials in the municipality and the district administration, seeking their intervention to ensure that trees are not cut,” said Tejinder Singh, a nearby resident.

Local people said the authorities wanted to develop the park, and for this, they had been chopping the trees. In the past one week, nearly 50 trees have been felled down and more trees will be chopped.

The residents, mostly elderly people, have been using the park for exercise, social gathering and daily get together. Children of the area, too, come down to play in the park.

“If the authorities want to develop the park, they should do it. If they want wider walking tracks, they should stick to their plans. But, they can do it well without chopping the trees. Now, a few trees are left and the authorities must take care of the green cover,” Pradip Dastidar, a retired Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) employee.

“We had approached the executive officer of the municipality and asked him to stop the cutting of trees. He assured us, but the work is going on,” he said.

Executive officer of the Rourkela Municipality D.P. Mohapatra said: “There is a plan for beautification and other developments inside the park. For this, a few trees have to be removed. We will plant more trees in place of the chopped ones, once the park is developed.”

“Utmost care is being taken to ensure that trees are not cut unnecessarily,” said Mohapatra.