Trees felled on Kaifi Azmi road in Banjara Hills for H-CITI project
Shor yunhi na parindon ne machaya hoga... Koi jangal ki taraf shahr se aaya hoga... Ped ke katne walon ko ye malum toh tha... Jism
Shor yunhi na parindon ne machaya hoga... Koi jangal ki taraf shahr se aaya hoga... Ped ke katne walon ko ye malum toh tha... Jism jal jaenge jab sar pe na saaya hoga. When legendary poet Kaifi Azmi penned this melancholic verse more than 40 years ago, little did he know that it would speak to the trees on the very road named after him in Hyderabad. On Tuesday, several trees were axed on Banjara Hills Road No.2 for facilitating construction of a vehicle underpass as part of the Hyderabad City Innovative & Transformative Infrastructure (H-CITI) project aimed for resolution of traffic hassles on the stretch.
The road had been renamed after Kaifi Azmi in 2012, initiated through a resolution by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporationâs standing committee. The tree felling permission for the H-CITI components was accorded last year, after an inspection by the Tree Protection Committee constituted under the Forest department. A total 13 trees, all of Peltophorum species aged about 15-20 years, were listed for felling under the underpass component. Under the âRemarksâ section, the reasons for felling were mentioned as âdamagedâ, âuprootingâ, âtermite attackâ, and âcrooked and root upliftâ. However, the tree stumps left on the site after felling did not show any signs of pest infestation or uprooting.
Varun Phadke, a tree lover who tried to stop the tree felling on the ground, said the trees were in good shape, and there was no reason for felling them. âExcept the marks made for identifying them for felling, there was no other hole or blemish on the trees. They were absolutely healthy,â Phadke said. Eight trees were marked and four trees were felled in the two hours he was present at the location, he said. The Tree Protection Committee gave permission for felling of 1532 trees at several locations in Banjara Hills including Road No.45, Film Nagar, Maharaja Agrasen Junction, Cancer Hospital Junction, Jubilee Hills Checkpost, and KBR Park Entrance, among others.
With the Supreme Court imposing a stay on tree felling within the 25-35 metres of the KBR Park, the corporation is going ahead with the work at other junctions which are outside this periphery.
The BriefWire