Punjab’s new legal framework aimed at protecting trees and preserving green cover in urban areas, faces challenges in implementation on the ground level. Despite the stated objective of safeguarding the urban environment, the absence of tree census, the reported lack of designated tree officers and continued felling of trees in green spaces have exposed gaps between legislative intent and actual enforcement.Urban areas across Punjab are witnessing increasing pressure on green spaces due to construction, infrastructure expansion, commercial development and changing land use.Sources said that most of the municipal councils do not have comprehensive census of trees. Without an official inventory documenting the number, species, age, location and condition of trees, it is difficult to determine the extent of green cover. A reliable tree census could help establish a data on the basis of which the new act can be implemented and green cover of urban areas can be protected.Besides, there were no designated tree officers in most of the municipal councils of the state. Tree officers are essential to ensuring that applications for tree felling are examined, permissions are granted only in accordance with the law, and violations are detected and acted upon.Residents and environmental advocates have also expressed concern over the felling of trees in green belts, parks, roadside stretches and other urban spaces.The Punjab Protection of Trees Act, 2026 was notified on September 24, 2026.The Act generally requires prior permission from the Tree Protection Officer before felling any covered tree. It also mandates the planting and maintenance of 10 trees for every tree felled and 25 trees for every heritage tree, subject to the provisions and exceptions under the Act.Unauthorised felling may attract environmental compensation and penalties of up to Rs 10,000 per tree. Violations of plantation requirements can invite escalating penalties, potentially reaching Rs 50,000 per tree.The minister for education and local bodies, Harjot Singh Bains, when contacted said that the legal frame work for implementing the new act to protect green cover in the urban bodies was being developed. The act would be implemented soon in all urban bodies, he said.The environmentalists are demanding that the government must also ensure that compensatory plantation, wherever legally required, should not be treated merely as a numerical exercise. Replacing a mature tree with a small sapling does not immediately restore the shade, carbon storage, biodiversity value benefits lost through felling.Punjab’s new tree protection framework could become an important instrument for conserving urban green cover, but its success will depend on enforcement rather than legislation alone. Until tree inventories are prepared, responsible officers are appointed green spaces across the state may continue to face pressure despite the promise of stronger legal protection.