Cyclone Ditwah: branches of a diseased tree cut for safety on busy road in Chennai

At a rain-kissed, glistening CP Ramaswamy Salai connected the greeting of November 29, the gangly stump of what would erstwhile person been an elegant Elephant earpod histrion stood similar a centurion-batter carrying the bat but defeated, having tally retired of partners. The felled branches are piled neatly astir the stump. The stump is stripped of its bark, but for a spot clinging connected to it. It besides displays scars and bulbous growths, suggesting a chequered life. There are nary leaves successful sight.

T.D. Babu, subordinate of Chennai District Green committee and a cardinal subordinate of histrion conservation NGO Nizhal identifies this histrion arsenic an Elephant earpod tree, an exotic taxon that was introduced and naturalised successful these parts overmuch similar the raintree. “The Elephant earpod histrion makes a bully avenue tree,” Babu adds 

When this writer quizzed the radical astir astir this peculiar illustration of the Elephant earpod tree, 1 of them pointed retired that the histrion had fixed mode successful its precocious parts which seemed acceptable for a fall, and therefore, had to beryllium chopped keeping nationalist information successful mind.

Babu remarks: “The trees connected C.P. Ramaswamy Salai are subjected to large stress: the cementing astir them makes them weak; and the lights placed connected them to gully attraction to commercialized establishments bash not lend positively to their wellness either. On this road, sometime ago, a commercialized constitution had to beryllium pulled up for abusing a tree. This Elephant earpod histrion looks diseased and could person suffered maltreatment too. What has befallen this histrion should acceptable disconnected alarm bells large capable for Greater Chennai Corporation to hear: regular monitoring of histrion wellness matters. And GCC should beryllium proactive and forestall harm to the trees connected its roads.”