As Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week — a period leading up to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and culminating in Easter Sunday — the shortage of palms this year has become a symbol of the broader challenges posed by urban development.
Hyderabad: Churches encountered an unexpected challenge for Palm Sunday, A shortage of palm leaves due to rapid urbanisation. Church committee members and organisers reported that, unlike in previous years when palms were readily available within a 10- to 15-km radius, they now had to travel much farther — reaching areas such as Chevalla, Ghatkeser, and Shadnagar — to secure the palms.
Karri Daniel, a member of the John Wesley Church in Goutammagar, Malkajgiri, explained, “Earlier, we used to cut palms from areas around Kapra, where there were ample green palms growing in jungle settings. Now, because of urbanisation, the urban forest has largely vanished, making it a tough task to find the right palms.”
M. Sukumar added that his church, located on Chapel Road, faced similar difficulties. “We used to collect palms from barren lands near Gachibowli and Chilkur, but for the past few years we have had to travel all the way to Shabad near Chevella, and even this year we did not manage to get the best quality palms,” he said.
Despite these logistical setbacks, churches were ready for Palm Sunday. At the Baptist Church in Narayanguda, Pastor David Prashant Gollapalli announced that a procession involving the church’s children would begin at 8 am and cover the neighbourhood before reuniting at the church for the service.
Similarly, Michael Abraham, choir in charge at Holy Family Church in Trimulgherry — a Tamil parish — shared that the Palm Sunday mass, conducted in Tamil, will include a special palm blessing at the grotto prior to the procession starting at 6.15 am.
Another large procession is set to start at 10.30 am, commencing from Methodist Boys High School on King Koti Road and passing by landmarks such as St George’s Anglican Church, the State Bank of Hyderabad, and Stanley Girls School before finally arriving at the Centenary Methodist Church.
As Palm Sunday marks the beginning of the Holy Week — a period leading up to Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and culminating in Easter Sunday — the shortage of palms this year has become a symbol of the broader challenges posed by urban development.
