Vizag's vanishing green guardians

VISAKHAPATNAM: As one nears the gate of the Mudasarlova reservoir close to the golf course on the city outskirts, one can't help but notice a massive, sprawling banyan tree that not only enhances the greenery of the place but also gives it a forest-like feel.
Denizens say the tree is almost a century old and has withstood the ravages of even cyclone Hudhud but now is in need of immediate conservation as many of its branches are breaking down.Banyan trees play an important role in the ecosystem and are the natural habitats of flying foxes, reptiles, squirrels, birds and so on.
Speaking about the ancient banyan tree at Mudsarlova, environment and heritage activist Sohan Hatangadi said, "The tree has a good location but has been subsequently weakened by human intervention. Some years ago, its secondary roots were cut off to make roads close to either of its side. Bereft of its secondary roots, the tree's support system started collapsing. With its branches growing and extending without support from the roots, the tree started giving way and breaking down. During cyclone Hudhud, two big branches broke further.
In addition to this, a cement base has been erected around the tree restricting its girth. The cement platform should have been made after keeping a certain gap from the tree and fencing could have also been put around the tree."
"This tree has been weakened and requires conservation before its condition deteriorates further. Government departments such as horticulture, Vuda and GVMC could come forward for its conservation. Adopting trees could be practiced by educational institutes, public sector companies, clubs, corporates, industries and so on," said Hatangadi, pointing out that in Pune, in cases where branches of old trees are breaking down, cement poles are being used to prop them up.
While there are some old trees in Varuna Park, Andhra University, Shipyard and Railway Quarters area and in Waltair Park behind HPCL Quarters (which houses two century-old banyan trees) that are more or less protected, there are hundreds of other old trees in and around the city that are in grave danger of being axed in the name of road widening.
For instance, the 125-year-old banyan tree on Railway Station Road that has had several brushes with the axe due to insensitive Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC) officials but was saved in the nick of time by some alert green lovers. However, scores of 70-80 year old banyan trees on either side of the same road were not so lucky and were felled by the civic body over the past few years for road widening.
According to S Ravi Kanth Reddy, founder-president, NGO Mother Earth Environment Consciousness Society (Meecons), there are hundreds of trees that are at least 70-80 years old on the Chodavaram-Sabbavaram route and Anandapuram Road to Pendurthy.
"If one takes a right turn towards the Kondakarla bird sanctuary from Achyutapuram Junction, one would come across more than a 100 old trees, mostly banyan ones, within a 3.5 kilometre stretch. With the impending expansion of the naval base and BARC also coming up in the vicinity, talks are on to expand the roads. Once the road expansion work starts, these trees will most likely be felled as so many trees can't be translocated. The only option is keeping the trees intact in the median and constructing the road on either side. But there has to be a genuine will among authorities to preserve these trees," Ravi Kanth Reddy said.
The median concept is quite popular in the cities of Goa and in Pune, where efforts are being made to conserve each and every tree despite road widening. Environmental experts also suggest that a tree census be taken up in the city and tree adoption be undertaken to prevent trees from being axed.