CITY ANCHOR STARTING WITH MUMBAI, CAMPAIGN WILL MOVE ON TO CHENNAI, BANGALORE, KOLKATA AND OTHER CITIES
Drive to save old trees across cities & villages…..NITYA KAUSHIK
TO preserve the fast diminishing tree cover, the Bombay Natural History Society has launched a campaign to identify and save ancient trees — over 100 years old — across all major cities and towns. Starting with Mumbai, the campaign will move on to Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, as well as smaller cities like Baroda and Ahmedabad and other towns.
Drive to save old trees across cities & villages…..NITYA KAUSHIK
TO preserve the fast diminishing tree cover, the Bombay Natural History Society has launched a campaign to identify and save ancient trees — over 100 years old — across all major cities and towns. Starting with Mumbai, the campaign will move on to Chennai, Bangalore, Kolkata, as well as smaller cities like Baroda and Ahmedabad and other towns.
Dr Ashok Kothari, honorary secretary of BNHS who kicked off the campaign recently, said that Indian cities and villages have many ancient trees. “Many are lost during development projects. Those trees which still exist should be given the importance they deserve and be protected.”
In Mumbai, the BNHS will write a letter to the mayor by next week asking the municipal authorities to identify heritage trees in different areas of the city. The representatives said that Mumbai has several trees that are very old.
“In the vicinity of Hornbill House is a Mahogany tree planted by the famous explorer David Livingstone when he returned from Africa nearly 150 years ago, and was a guest of the then governor,” Kothari said.
He said that across Mumbai, there are several such trees which are over 100 years old but are now being uprooted during construction and expansion of the city.
Kothari said that several BNHS experts, with their wide knowledge and experience of Indian flora, could definitely help the BMC to identify those trees.BNHS experts said that each city should have heritage trees which can be a major tourist attraction as well.
In a letter written to BNHS members recently, Kothari said: “I saw an ancient mulberry tree at Joshimath, a Jambun tree at Kanchipuram, a famous Banyan tree at the Botanical Garden at Kolkata and also on the banks of Narmada, a Rayan tree on Shetrunja mountain (holy place of Jains) and recently found two very old banyan trees at Sardar farm at Deesa in north Gujarat, planted by British officers nearly two hundred years ago.”
He added that in the early 19 th Century, Bishop Heber travelled from Kolkata to Mumbai, when he visited the famous Banyan tree near Bharuch and was very impressed by the canopy and spread of its branches.
“Mega-cities like Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Ahmedabad and many such areas have ancient trees. During a joint programme organised by BNHS and the Rotary Club of Bombay Seacoast, our members walked from a 300-year-old Baobab tree at Santacruz to the 400 -year old Baobab tree opposite Bhabha Hospital at Bandra, Mumbai. Both the trees are connected with the history of the suburbs of the city but they are in the condition of total neglect,” Kothari said.