Crowd-funding initiative helps save banyan tree in Goa

Panaji, August 21

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A crowd-funding initiative by nature lovers and local organisations has saved over a 100- year-old banyan tree near Arambol beach in North Goa, which had gotten uprooted due to incessant rains earlier this month.

A popular hang-out spot in the area, foreigners and locals would frequently have their yoga sessions under the tree.

Incessant rainfall had hit the coastal state on August 5, uprooting the tree, which had crashed on the road side.

Heartbroken locals and nature lovers launched an online crowd-funding campaign to re-root the tree.

Avertino Miranda, coordinator of Goa Green Brigade, said the campaign was launched to collect money to get the tree back on its feet.

Funds to the tune of around Rs 2 lakh were collected and experts were roped in from Hyderabad for the replanting procedure.

Uday Krishna of Vata Foundation helped re-root the tree, which was planted in a three to four-feet-deep hole, dug with the help of a JCB machine, Miranda said.

The two-day operation was carried out on August 18, he said, claiming that this was the first time that a crowd- funding initiative was used to replant a tree. PTI