Akanksha Pandey

Human who loves nature, music, trekking and living life happily with other humans. 🤘🏻😎

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

We shall overcome, one day. ✊🌳

If we walk hand in hand, stand united, and keep believing in our cause, change is inevitable.

Together, we are stronger. 💚

#WeShallOvercome #HandInHand #CitizenPower #Unity #TogetherWeCan #SaveOurTrees #Pune #PeoplePower #CommunityFirst #StrongerTogether

[Akanksha Pandey @LittlePandey]

@AnneAnish @ameetgsingh @anishvkan @navipeth @RajaSubramani22 @RupeshSarode03 @SVYadwadkar @VinitaDeshmukh @gtitli @NatarajanS32126 #StopRFD

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

"Listen to Rekha Maushi and understand the various steps and efforts citizens have undertaken so far regarding the RFD project." 🎙️📢
#SavePuneHills 🌳
#NoToRFD 🚫
#CitizensForPune ✊
#ProtectOurHills ⛰️

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

🚇 One metro = approx 1000 passengers.
Even with 10-20 trips per hour, capacity is only 10,000–20,000 people.

But Hinjewadi has nearly 5 lakh daily commuters. 🤯

Single-track metro can never handle this load alone.
People are being sold dreams instead of real solutions. 🚧

#Pune #Hinjewadi #PuneMetro #Traffic #Infrastructure #Development #SmartCity #Punekars #UrbanPlanning #MetroReality #HinjewadiTraffic #PublicTransport

[Gauravvchauhan @gauravvchauhan]

Kudos to puneri people who are fighting for saving cities Green cover .. 👏🏼👏🏼

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

Pune ko concrete flood trap banaya ja raha hai. 🌊⚠️ Trees kaato, rivers concretize karo, phir floods pe surprise dikhao? Yeh development nahi, city destruction hai. 🌳🪚🔥

#SavePune #StopRFD

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

🚨 Maharashtra’s budget is ₹7 lakh crore.
36 districts.

People are not against development.
People are against unplanned construction destroying quality of life. ⚠️🏗️🌳

#Maharashtra #UrbanPlanning #UDCPR #SaveTrees

[Akanksha Pandey @LittlePandey]

@ameetgsingh Very well observed and written, @ameetgsingh . It pains me to see Pune's plight. 😓

[ameet singh @ameetgsingh]

The Curious Case of the Invisible Tree Expert
In a city already straining under rapid urbanisation and shrinking green cover, a recent municipal meeting has exposed a troubling paradox at the heart of environmental governance: decisions affecting thousands of trees are being made with the approval of an expert who is, for all practical purposes, invisible.
The meeting held on 19th May 2026 by the Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) was convened to address growing public concern over rampant tree felling across the city. What emerged, however, was not reassurance—but a deeper institutional opacity that raises serious questions about accountability, legality, and environmental stewardship.
The Invisible Authority
Under the provisions of the Trees Act—formally known as the Urban Trees Protection and Preservation Act—the role of a designated “tree expert” is central to any decision involving the felling of trees. This expert is tasked with evaluating the health, structural integrity, and necessity of removal of trees before any permission is granted.
Crucially, the law mandates that this expert be present at all public hearings concerning tree felling.
Yet, during the course of the meeting, it was revealed that this tree expert has not attended a single one of over 150 public hearings conducted over the past four years. Despite this, approvals bearing the expert’s signature have consistently been made available to the authorities.
This contradiction—absence in person but presence on paper—has turned the role of the tree expert into a symbol of systemic dysfunction.
A Role Revealed by Litigation
Perhaps even more concerning is the fact that the very existence and operational role of this tree expert only came to light after a civil case was filed. For years, decisions affecting thousands of trees were being made without public awareness of the expert oversight supposedly guiding them.
This raises a fundamental question: if oversight exists only in documentation but not in practice, can it be considered oversight at all?
The Disappearing Trees—and Numbers
The meeting also exposed inconsistencies in the PMC’s tree plantation commitments. Authorities had originally provided a written assurance to plant 51,000 trees. This number was later reduced to 41,000.
Of these, the PMC claims that 8,000 saplings have been planted. However, independent verification by citizen groups confirms the existence of only around 800 such trees.
This leaves approximately 33,000 trees unaccounted for—trees that were promised but have yet to materialise since 2024.
Such discrepancies are not merely administrative lapses; they represent a tangible loss in ecological restoration efforts in a city already facing environmental stress.
The Riverfront Impact
Adding to the concern is the ongoing riverfront development project, which, according to surveys conducted by activists and students, has encroached upon nearly 40 percent of the riverbank. This has reportedly resulted in the loss of between 1,15,000 and 1,25,000 trees.
Notably, no expert evaluation or documented opinion from the designated tree expert was presented in relation to this massive ecological impact.
Trees as Public Assets
In India, trees are not merely part of the landscape—they are recognised as public assets. Their value extends far beyond aesthetics. In dense urban environments like Pune, trees:
Reduce air pollution by filtering particulate matter
Lower temperatures through shade and evapotranspiration
Recharge groundwater and prevent soil erosion
Support biodiversity by providing habitats
Improve mental and physical health of residents
The loss of tree cover directly translates into increased heat, poorer air quality, and diminished quality of life.
Custodianship and Responsibility
As the governing civic body, the PMC functions as the custodian of these public assets. This role is not symbolic—it carries legal and ethical obligations these are wilfully and maliciously ignored.

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

🚨 51,000 compensatory trees promised.
Only 8,000 claimed planted. 🌳

Where are the remaining 43,000 trees? ❓

If commitments are not fulfilled, why grant further permissions? ⚠️

#SaveTrees #SaveBHS #Pune #EnvironmentalJustice

[Sarang Yadwadkar @SVYadwadkar]

@LiveLawIndia Most of them become politicians & ruin the country.
I feel ashamed of your views, My Lord.
Remember, wherever there are Serial Offenders, Serial Defenders are born.
@BDUTT
@bahardutt
@sardesairajdeep
@BhavreenMK
@lifeindia2016
@ameetgsingh
@ShripadManthan
@suchetadalal
@DrVishwam

[ameet singh @ameetgsingh]

Some of us are proud cockroaches

[#AirPollution #EnVironMent @navipeth]

@Aayush_712k @AnneAnish @ameetgsingh @anishvkan @LittlePandey @RajaSubramani22 @RupeshSarode03 @SVYadwadkar @gtitli @VinitaDeshmukh @swapnil10q Just accept my challenge..
Try standing for 5 minutes at 1pm in the RFD completed zone, bare feet

.vs

Standing on the non RFD river bank, like near the SMJoshi bridge

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

Balaji Station wasn’t in the original Metro plan — the design was changed later for “ridership.”

If alignments can change for stations, why not to save 2–3 heritage trees? 🌳

#SavePuneTrees #AlternateDesign #GreenPune

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

🌳 We are not fighting only for trees. We are fighting for human lives & safer cities. 🌧️⚠️

Ambil Odha floods were a warning — lives were lost because natural drains, hills & green cover were ignored. 🌊💔

#AmbilOdha #PuneFloods #ClimateCrisis #ChaloPMC
#Drrahulsawant

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

⚖️ Know The Act 🌳
As per the Tree Act, there should be a tree every 10 meters.
Citizens must demand greener, healthier, and sustainable cities. 🌱🚩

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

False transplantation reports won’t hide the truth.
You can cut trees, manipulate files, and spread lies — but people are watching.

Centuries-old trees are not numbers on paper.

#SaveTrees #StopGreenWashing #Pune #EnvironmentalJustice #chalopmc_punesamwad

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

⚠️🌍 Pune is growing fast…
More buildings 🏢
More roads 🚧
More concrete 🏗️

But are we prepared for the next seismic event? 💥

Disaster doesn’t arrive with a warning. 🚨
Preparedness is not fear — it’s responsibility. 🙏

#Pune #Earthquake #SeismicAlert #DisasterPreparedness

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

“Central Govt funded” — that’s what the Tree Officer claimed.
But facts
Not fully central. It’s a 50:50 GoI–GoM project.
And 70–80% funding is debt (incl. EIB & AFD loans).
This debt is repaid by the project → citizens of Pune pay.
That’s why public transport gets costlier.

[Anne Anish @AnneAnish]

🌳 A tree asks for nothing… yet gives us everything. 🙏

☀️ Cools the city
🌫️ Fights pollution
🍃 Gives oxygen

Then why are we cutting them so easily? 💔

Plant 1 CRORE trees before permitting tree cutting. 🚫🌳

#SaveTrees #Pune #ChaloPMC 🌍