Activists have been campaigning to save the green cover in Mumbai’s Aarey. | Photo Credit: BCCL

Key Highlights The Aarey area has been in the headlines for the proposal to cut over 2,600 trees to make way for Mumbai Metro. Many Bollywood celebrities were trolled on social media for supporting the Metro project. Maharashtra government argued that the area was government land and not a forest.

Mumbai: Despite widespread protests against the environmental damage to be caused by the felling of trees in Aarey area to make way for a Mumbai metro depot, the Bombay High Court dismissed all four petitions in the case on Friday.

Activists have been campaigning to save the green cover in Mumbai’s Aarey and the HC decision now gives the nod to cut down trees for the work on the Mumbai metro depot. Activists on Friday said that they would obey the order by the Bombay HC.

Arguing for the construction of the Mumbai Metro line, the government of Maharashtra had on Thursday said that the Aarey area could not be termed as a forest ‘just because it has greenery’.

any activists and Mumbaikars were campaigning against the proposal to fell over 2,600 trees for the creation of a Mumbai Metro depot. They said that the area was home to many species of flora and fauna.

However, the state government said that the area was created to serve the purpose of a milk colony and to house cattle and horses.

The Mumbai Metro work in Aarey has divided the citizens of Mumbai with one section wanting to conserve the area and another that wanted the Metro expansion to reduce the traffic woes for many.

Even Bollywood celebrities like Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar were in the headlines for supporting the Metro work. Salman Khan had taken a ride in the Metro for the launch of his popular show Bigg Boss 13. The launch took place at a Metro yard in Mumbai and also praised the safety features of a metro train.

