28,000 trees chopped for construction of fast track

KATHMANDU: As many as 27,029 trees have been cut down in curse of construction of the Nijgadh-Kathmandu Fast Track.

Nepal Army is constructing the 77 kilometers long fast track.

Out of some 38,664 trees that needed to be cut on that section, 27,069 trees have been cut down, Chief of the Fast Track Project Implementation Division, Lieutenant Colonel Bishwa Bandhu Pahadi said.

He said that the number of trees has been cut as they had to be chopped down and the remaining 11,100 trees would be hewed while constructing the tunnel.

Lieutenant Colonel Pahadi said the trees have been chopped taking permission from the Ministry of Forests and Environment.

The chopped trees have been handed over to the bodies concerned.

The Ministry of Forests has been given the responsibility of managing the chopped trees that were under its care while the community forest users committees have been given the responsibility of managing the trees that were under the community forests.

Nepal Army has grown some 150 thousand tree saplings in nurseries at Nijgadh for planting them as per the requirement of the environmental standard of planting 25 trees in place of a single tree that is cut in course of construction.

In this connection, around 5,000 tree saplings have been planted at various places of Kohalbi Municipality.