Ahmedabad: Civic body faces flak for heavy pruning of trees

Ahmedabad: The garden department of the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has come under fire for what residents are calling aggressive and damaging pre-monsoon tree trimming, with over 4,500 trees pruned across the city in a month.The trimming, which is being carried out at night in several parts of the city, has sparked public outrage after videos of the operations went viral on social media. In the Sola area along Science City Road, residents have accused the department of stripping trees bare, not merely for safety ahead of the monsoon season, but also to ensure advertising hoardings and streetlight poles remain unobstructed. Locals warn that the scale of trimming poses a serious risk to the survival of the trees.Garden department director A C Patel defended the exercise, saying, "Tree trimming is carried out annually as part of pre-monsoon activities to prevent incidents of trees and branches falling during the monsoon. This year, 4,500 trees have been trimmed ahead of the season. The garden department does not trim trees unnecessarily."The controversy comes amid a related incident on the same stretch. In March 2026, the operator of an educational institution on Sola Science City Road was found to have illegally cut 12 trees on the road divider — reportedly to improve the visibility of their hoarding. The garden department served a notice and slapped a fine of Rs 3.2 lakh on the operator.