Delhi: DTU transplants trees to build facilities but activists sceptical about survival rate

NEW DELHI: Delhi Technological University (DTU) in Rohini has undertaken a massive task of transplanting 111 trees of different species to their sports complex in order to build a new academic block and hostels for students. Delhi government had announced a tree transplantation policy under which 80% of the trees being felled for an approved project would have to be mandatorily transplanted.

“So far, around 80 trees have already been transplanted and we are hopeful that all will survive,” said DTU vice-chancellor Yogesh Singh. “The university is also planting more than 1100 trees.” The private contractor carrying out the process at a total cost of over Rs.7 lakh claimed that they have 90% success rate. The area from where the trees are being uprooted is spread across 5600 square metres.
Kejriwal and deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia turned up on Saturday to witness the process of transplantation. The covered roots of the trees, which include the soil, were lifted along with the branches by a crane. The trees were taken to the area around the sports complex where trenches had been dug. These were then dropped into the pits.
Kejriwal, who watered a tree which was over 15 years old, observed: “There is no need to cut a tree now, no matter how big it is. We have also been told that the survival rate is good. This will be replicated by the government. We have already formed a policy under which if there is any new construction, permission will not be given to cut trees. These have to be compulsorily transplanted and 80% of the trees have to survive. Witnessing this is encouraging for us.”
However, the entire process is mired in controversy. The trees being transplanted by the university include neem, amaltash and jamun. Tree expert and author Pradip Krishen it is very difficult for these species to survive. “It is very very hard to transplant such species unless there is specialized equipment and huge expertise. They have to carry out this process around January and not in this season. In our climate and conditions, the success rate is 10-12%. There are some species like ficus which have shallow roots. These can be transplanted but only if people who are doing it know what they are doing,” said Kishen.
When DMRC shifted trees to Asola, very few survived. At Pragati Maidan, only 36 of 1713 trees had been found by an audit survey to be healthy enough to survive. And the entire exercise is quite costly with meagre gains, green activists have pointed out.
However, contractor Ashok Kumar claims they have been quite successful earlier. “When working with PWD on construction of a hospital at Rani Bagh, 30 trees were transplanted. At another project in Ballabgarh, 125 trees were transplanted and the survival rate was 90%,” he said. NDMC, too, has transplanted 17 trees out of which 16 have survived.