Thanks to ‘The Hitavada’ for raising an alarming and eye-opening issue in the article published in City Line on March 21, titled ‘Environment Concern, Buried.’ With recent amendments to the Maharashtra (Urban Areas) Protection and Preservation of Trees (Amendment) Act, it has become very difficult to legally cut a tree, hence, negative strategic planning are being done to illegally bring down full-grown trees. Once a tree is completely choked with construction and demolition waste, there will be hardly any water percolation during rains. Groundwater table has gone down significantly due to over extraction of ground water. Thus, in a nut shell, the water supply to the roots of the tree is being cut, which weakens the root to a large extent resulting in uprooting of trees even with mild wind pressure.

 

Once the tree is uprooted, those who ‘killed’ the tree with their strategic planning tag it as a natural process and get rid of any legal action. Strategically choking is being done just prior to rains. On similar lines, at many places, branches at one side of the tree are being chopped, as getting a permission for trimming branches is easy as compared to one for cutting the entire tree. Thus, by cutting branches of one side, the center of gravity of the tree gets disturbed, which results in its uprooting even with mild air pressure. It is sad, we talk of protecting green cover of the city, where the tree cutting gang roams across the city with an open invitation of cutting trees and administration as well as citizens play the role of spectators.