MUMBAI: The
Mumbai Metro Rail Corporation Ltd
(MMRCL) has wrongly identified an uncommon species of ficus tree as the commonly found peepul tree (ficus religiosa) outside
St Xavier
’s College in Fort.
The BMC’s tree inventory stated: “The tree falls within the excavation line and hence is to be cut.”
As the tree was barricaded by the MMRCL on Wednesday, Prof
Rajendra Shinde
, who heads the botany department at the college, alerted his students about it. Thirty of his students have written the Metro authorities to spare the tree.
“It’s not just a tree but an ecosystem in itself, on which hundreds of microorganisms, insects and birds depend,” said Prof Shinde. If they can’t spare it, they should make every effort to transplant it successfully, he said, while questioning the “poor rate of survival” of the trees transplanted by MMRCL.
Botanists said , the tree appears to be ficus arnottiana, a species not commonly found in the city. MMRCL officials could not be reached for comment.
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