2 'termite-infested' heritage trees to be axed in Chandigarh, UT gets into action

Dushyant Singh Pundir

Chandigarh, July 11

It took a student’s life to find that two heritage trees in the city have outlived their life and are “heavily infested” with termites. The heritage trees standing tall in the heart of the city, Sector 19 and 23, for more than a century will now be axed, as recommended by a committee formed by the administration.

On the morning of July 8, a 250-year-old heritage peepal tree split and fell on students at Carmel Convent School, Sector 9-B. The incident claimed the life of 16-year-old Heerakshi. Eighteen students and one bus attendant were injured. The bus attendant is battling for life at the PGI.

The peepal tree was also heavily “infested with termites” which had weakened the trunk of the tree. Environmentalist LR Budaniya said trees should be treated with termiticide at least once a year.

Subsequent to the incident, the administration directed its team to do an extensive survey of all “dead and dry trees” and trees posing danger to human life and property.

According to an order issued by the UT Administration on December 21, 2017, it had notified 31 trees as “Heritage Trees”, as there was a danger of losing such major trees due to various reasons and the need was felt to protect these, educate the community on the importance of the heritage trees and protecting the city’s tree wealth.

Adviser to the Administrator Dharam Pal said the remaining 30 heritage trees had been thoroughly verified by the committee comprising officers from the Engineering Department, horticulture wing of the Municipal Corporation and the Forest Department, for their health, strength and vulnerability to uprooting. The committee has also recommended the pruning of three heritage trees, including the one at Sukhna Lake. “In order to avert any untoward incident, the administration will remove all dead/dry trees,which are posing a danger to life and property, within a week,” said Dharam Pal.

The Adviser directed the departments concerned that the pruning of trees or their termite treatment should be carried out wherever required as top priority, with special attention to schools.

Meanwhile, six teams were deployed to survey 211 schools. These conducted a detailed survey of 201 schools and other educational institutions. The teams are likely to submit their report on Tuesday.

• 1,634dead/dry trees axed in city in 5 years
• 180trees for which permission given to cut or remove in the past two months

Termite the root cause

Termite makes a tree hollow. The weakened trunk cannot withstand the weight of the tree. Eventually, the tree dies. During storms and heavy rain, heavy branches may come off as the trunk is hollow.

What admn says

In order to avert any untoward incident, the administration will remove all dead/dry trees, which are posing a danger to life and property, within a week. — Dharam Pal, Adviser