Trees by roadside gasping for breath
| Date :22-Apr-2019 |
By Vikas Vaidya:
Who is suffering most because of the development works being taken up in Nagpur in a haphazard manner? The answer is ‘everybody’. Sufferings of human beings can be heard because they can raise voice. What about flora and fauna? If one takes a round of city, one would realise the manner in which civic authorities have neglected the existence of trees. The trees by the roadside are gasping for breath. Their shouts can not be heard by humans but the suffocation, they are experiencing is making them feel so uncomfortable that only death can give them freedom from that choked respiration. ‘The Hitavada’ photographers have been taking photographs of various places where no space for the trees to respire was left. Even the citizens of Nagpur are bringing such places into the notice of this newspaper. ‘The Hitavada’ extends its thanks to them for their yeoman service.
Like what National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) did near Raj Bhavan chowk, same thing can be observed on the road in front of Ravi Bhavan just close to High Court building. There are a lot of old trees. Earlier, there was soil in large quantity around these trees. When concretisation started it encroached upon the maximum part of soil with very little part of it left for the trees. Contractors after concretisation made a very meek and non-serious effort by leaving less than one foot space around already existed trees. There are big trees which require lot of space for the respiration. If adequate space is left then they don’t require watering, they can obtain water from their own resources. But it seems the authorities be it Metro, NHAI, NMC, PWD have joined hands to murder the trees collectively so that the third generation of human being also would gasp and live on the mercy of oxygen masks. Groundwater level has already gone down so no tree would be able to grow.
If we really want to do plantation then we must see that the tree should have proper growth for which access should be made clear. Water percolation should be smoothened.
Municipal Commissioner issues orders to ensure enough space around tree trunk
Taking a serious note of trees getting suffocated during construction of cement roads in Nagpur city, Abhijit Bangar, Municipal Commissioner has ordered the officers concerned to remove cement gathered close to tree trunks. He also ordered to issue notices to all authorities concerned with regards to taking necessary precautions while construction of new roads, so that trees will not get suffocated in future. NMC would be conducting a meeting on every Monday to review the situation.