Decades-old tree cut for Metro

Hyderabad: Yet another huge tree, more than three decades old, has fallen prey to the ongoing Metro works on the Ameerpet main road, opposite Maitri Vanam. Though chopping just one branch of the tree would have sufficed, the tree was chopped halfway up its trunk.

Another 200 trees, over five decades old, will soon be removed from the Erramanzil government quarters area to make space for the parking area of the Metro Rail station. Half of these trees are to be relocated to the outskirts of the city, whereas the rest are likely to be re-planted around the area.

“The amount of vehicular and industrial pollution emitted these days cannot be absorbed and purified by the number of trees we are left with. It is okay if the trees are trimmed, but chopping them down to the trunk is not right,” said Jayaprakash Nambaru, founder, iGoGreen Foundation.

The Metro Rail officials alone uprooted 1,250 trees and translocated 384. They, however, also planted over 10,000 saplings as part of a plantation drive. Apart from HMR, in the last two months, more than 300-400 trees were chopped by APTransco along the Shamshabad-Shabad stretch and Cherlapalli phase 1 - Gate 3, Kukatpally and Vivekanandanagar areas.

“The number of trees that are felled is four times more than what are relocated. And what is the point of relocating them to the outskirts?” environmentalist Thakur Rajkumar Singh asked.

Nagabhushanam, ACF, Hyderabad division, said, “Not all trees survive when they are uprooted. If permission is sought for five trees or less, the forest department can grant it, but for more, the department and the Tree Protection Committee have to inspect and approve, only after which further action will be taken. The Tree Protection Committee also has citizen representatives.”