The Hindu 04.09.2009
Mangalore City Corporation to plant saplings to make up for loss of trees
Raviprasad Kamila
— Photo: R. Eswarraj
Firm stand: Residents of Valencia in Mangalore are opposed to the plan to cut the trees between Father Muller Hospital and Morgan’s Gate for upgrading the road.
MANGALORE: To make up for the loss of trees while laying concrete roads here, the Mangalore City Corporation (MCC) has decided to plant saplings at an estimated cost of Rs. 10 lakh with the assistance of the Forest Department.
“We will send a cheque for Rs. 10 lakh to the Forest Department on Thursday,” corporation commissioner K.N. Vijayaprakash told The Hindu.
Mayor M. Shankar Bhat said that about 140 trees had been cut in recent years for upgrading select main tar roads into concrete roads. It was not possible to plant saplings on the sides of all roads that had been upgraded because of lack of space. Saplings would be planted wherever there was space.
The civic body has decided to entrust the whole process of planting and maintenance of saplings to forest officials as they would do it in a better way. After plantation, they would have to maintain the plants for three years.
The Mayor said that the Forest Department, in a letter to the civic body, had said that it would spend Rs. 837 to plant and maintain each sapling for three years.
Deputy Conservator of Forests (Dakshina Kannada) Vijaya Kumar told The Hindu that the Forest Department had been telling the civic body for the last two years to plant three saplings for each tree cut. However, the civic body had not followed the instructions all the time. For example, though it cut some trees in front of Saibeen Complex at Lalbagh while upgrading the tar road between Lalbagh and Bejai, the civic body had not made any provision for planting of saplings.
Mr. Kumar said that the department had instructed the civic body to include planting of saplings while making plans for upgrading roads.
Mr. Kumar said the department would fix tree guards for all saplings that would be planted.
Tree cutting
To a question, Mr. Kumar said the civic body had not sent any proposal to the Forest Department seeking its permission to cut trees on the road between Fr. Muller Hospital and Morgan’s Gate.
Mr. Vijayaprakash said the corporation had not taken any decision on felling the tress on this stretch for upgrading the tar road into a concrete one.“Development of the city and conservation of greenery have to go together,” Mr. Vijayaprakash added.
