Chapter I PRELIMINARY

1. (1) This Act may be called the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) 1[Protection and Preservation] of Trees Act, 1975.
2. (2) It extends to the whole of the State of Maharashtra.
3. (3) It shall come into force in any urban area or part thereof on such date as the State Government may, by notification in the Official Gazette, specify; and different dates may be specified for different urban areas or parts thereof.

In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires,- 1[(1a) "heritage tree" means a tree categorised as such by the Tree Authority, in accordance with the norms as may be notified by the Government;] 2[3[(1aa)] "prescribed" means prescribed by rules made under section 22 of this Act;]

1. (a) "preservation of trees" includes planting of new trees and 4[other operations for survival and propagation of the trees;]
2. (b) "relevant Act" means the Act under which the urban local authority concerned is constituted;
3. (c) "to fell a tree" includes burning or cutting or 5[in any way damaging a tree;] 6[(d) "tree" means any perennial woody plant, whether in the seeding or sappling stage or fully grown stage, and includes shrubs whose branches spring from the ground level;]
4. (e) "Tree Officer" means an officer appointed as such by the Tree Authority for the purpose of this Act;
5. (f) "Urban area" means a municipal corporation area for which a municipal corporation is constituted under 7[the Mumbai Municipal Corporation Act (Bom. III of 1888), the Maharashtra Municipal Corporations Act (LIX of 1949), or a municipal area within the meaning of clause (24) of section 2 of the Maharashtra Municipal Councils, Nagar Panchayats and Industrial Townships Act, 1965 (Mah. XL of 1965),] and includes a notified area for which a Special Planning Authority is constituted or appointed under section 40 of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 (Mah. XXXVII of 1966) or an area designated as the site for a new town for which a Development Authority is constituted under section 113 of the Maharashtra Regional and Town Planning Act, 1966 (Mah. XXXVII of 1966);
6. (g) "urban local authority" in respect of any urban area, means the municipal corporation, municipal council, Special Planning Authority or Development Authority, as the case may be, having jurisdiction over that area;
7. (h) words and expressions used in this Act, but not defined herein, shall have the meanings assigned to them in the relevant Act.