Kartarpur, May 31
Hundreds of trees along the Jalandhar-Amritsar highway are being axed to make way for the ongoing road widening and four-laning project, for quite some time now.

The project of cutting the trees, which started nearly a month ago, is expected to extend for another month, thereby increasing the toll of those trees that once formed a beautiful green belt on either side of the highway.

None of the trees, be it any variety, including eucalyptus, banyan, sheesham, amaltas and acacia, falling along the road are being spared.

A number of trees that have been axed so far and those on the ‘cut-list’ have a height of more than 100 meters, indicating their age between 30 and 50 years.

Today when The Tribune team visited the site, hundred of stumps of axed trees were seen outside the CRPF complex at Sarai Khas. However, the story doesn’t end here. All the way until Kartarpur, several groups of laborers, employed for tree-felling, were busy in chopping the remaining trees.

Due to highway and fast moving traffic, the men were having difficult time, especially in cutting the tall trees. Risking his life, while one man climbed the tall tree to tie a rope with one end, the second labourer tied the other end of the rope to a tractor standing few meters away.

After this, the duo, using a saw at the base of the tree, cut it into two halves. Then the tractor driver was told to pull the tree in other direction, thereby helping in uprooting and pulling down the tree in a safe position.

On being asked about the fate of these lifeless trees, the men said they would be taken to a mandi in Kapurthala where these would be auctioned in a month’s time. They said the forest development corporation fetches around Rs 200 per quintal of good wood.

Heaps of bricks and stones, which would fill up the dying green belt to form a base for the road, were seen lying at the places once occupied by lush green trees.

Harcharan Singh, a milkman, said: “I wonder where the department would find as much space to plant more trees. In coming times, where will I be able to take some rest en route if all these trees are removed”.

Dharampal, forest range officer, confirmed that the trees were being axed for road widening. He admitted that only a narrow strip of forestland would be left on either side. He said that some of the trees being axed come under the Jalandhar range and rest in Kapurthala range.

However, Dharampal refused to divulge any details regarding the number of trees being sawed or the stretch of land along which deforestation is being carried out. When asked about the place where trees will be planted in lieu of those uprooted, he refused to say anything.

Jalandhar, May 31
SSP Arpit Shukla ordered an inquiry by DSP (rural-I) Kulwant Singh to know the facts of the case under which an FIR had been lodged against Kadiana village sarpanch Davinder Kumar, Som Nath and the latter’s relatives in connection with the charges of kidnapping and raping a girl of the same village.

Shukla marked the inquiry after getting a complaint from SAD (rural) vice-president Sukhjit Singh Babli. He stated in the complaint that the Kadiana sarpanch and other villagers had been falsely implicated in the case.

When contacted, Kulwant Singh said he had already started the inquiry which would be completed within a week.

Talking to The Tribune, Babli claimed that complainant Sunita Devi and Som Nath had married each other after fleeing from their houses on May 8 after about four years of their courtship.

When she came in contact with her family members, she gave her statement against the sarpanch, Som Nath, his father Tirath Ram, his maternal uncle Vijay Walia, his brother-in-law Kulwinder and some others. On her statement the FIR under sections 366, 376, 342, 506, 511 and 120-B of the IPC was registered on May 25.

Interestingly in her statement she alleged that she had not married Som Nath willingly, but her photographs were taken after giving some intoxicating substance to her.

On the other hand, Babli said that after their marriage on May 8, Sunita Devi also appeared for her physical education paper of BA (II) examination of Guru Nanak Dev University at Guru Nanak Khalsa College, Daroli Kalan in Jalandhar, on May 12.

Giving information provided by the principal of the college to them under the RTI, Babli said if she was forced to marry after administering intoxicating substance on May 8, how she could appear in the examination on May 12.

Meanwhile, terming the allegation levelled in her statement in the FIR unfounded, Babli demanded cancellation of the FIR after a fair inquiry.