Chapter IV DUTIES OF TREE AUTHORITY

Notwithstanding anything contained in the relevant Act or in any other law for the time being in force, and subject to any special or general directions given by the State Government, the Tree Authority shall be responsible for-

1. (a) 1[protection and preservation] of all trees in all lands within its jurisdiction;
2. (b) 2[carrying out a census of the existing trees in all lands within its jurisdiction, 3[once before December 1996 and thereafter once in every five years] 4[by using new technological means such as GIS based tree census or any other modern technology]];
3. (c) prescribing standards specifying the number and types of trees which each plot of land shall have and which shall be planted therein;
4. (d) development and maintenance of nurseries for the supply of seeds, sapplings and trees to persons who desire to plant new trees or to replace trees which have been felled with the previous permission of the Tree Officer 5[or involuntarily uprooted];
5. (e) transplanting of trees necessitated by construction of new roads or widening or existing roads or for safeguarding danger to life or property; 6[(f) organisation of flower, fruit, vegetable, tree or plant shows 7[at least once a year] and assisting private and public institutions in organising such shows, and creation of consciousness of importance of trees and vegetation to the human welfare];
6. (g) grant of advice and technical assistance to any person seeking such advice or assistance in any matter connected with 8[planting, protection and preservation] of trees;
7. (h) planting and maintaining such number of trees as it considers necessary, according to the prescribed standards, 9[along the roads,] in public parks and gardens and on banks of rivers or takes or 10[sea shores, on hills, open spaces or public places]; 11[(i) planting number of trees of the same variety or any other local or native variety, in such number equal to the age of the tree being transplanted and carry out such transplantation under the expert guidance only;
8. (j) ensuring that compensatory plantation is carried out and survival of trees, including the compensatory plantation, in all lands within the jurisdiction of the urban local authority;
9. (k) ensuring utilisation of tree cess for conservation and preservation of trees;
10. (l) carrying out any other activity as assigned by the Maharashtra State Tree Authority, from time to time;
11. (m) deciding which tree is to be categorised as heritage tree, and enumerate heritage trees;
12. (n) ensuring that the land owned by the urban local authority or land owned by the Government is earmarked for the purpose of plantations and ensure such plantations shall be scientific in nature and should be carried out with an objective to preserve local species and improve green cover of the area, to the extent of not less than 33 per cent.;
13. (o) ensuring pruning and maintenance of trees is carried out in a scientific manner under expert guidance, every year;
14. (p) ensuring that the compensatory plantation for each of the naturally fallen tree is carried out by the urban local authority;
15. (q) undertaking any other schemes or measures for achieving the objects of this Act.]