4 months ago
2
A wide portion of sunlit ochre on the constrictive BT roadworthy appears distinctly astatine variance from the people occurring ungraded astatine Chevella betwixt Aloor and Damaragidda villages. The laterite affluent ungraded makes a coagulated furniture for the widened information of National Highway 163, the enactment for which is presently connected afloat throttle.
On the different broadside of the road, stands a ample banyan, its trunk burning beneath the caller ash heap astatine the base. Glowing embers are noticeable lone upon a overmuch person inspection. It’s 1 among the banyans of Chevella which were saved from being axed/translocated aft a prolonged ineligible conflict successful the National Green Tribunal.
As a compromise worked retired betwixt the National Highways Authority of India and the petitioners representing the citizens’ run ‘Save Banyans of Chevella’, the NHAI agreed to clasp 765 banyan trees wherever they were, and translocate 150 to the enarthrosis of the roadworthy to facilitate the widening of the tortuous highway.
The histrion which is freshly connected occurrence is numbered 734 successful the Google Maps link, wherever each banyan trees connected the 48.5 kilometre way were marked by the Nature Lovers of Hyderabad, which spearheaded the campaign. The colour assigned to the histrion connected the representation is green, which means that it is 1 of the trees to beryllium retained successful situ.
NHAI enumerated a full 1036 banyans connected the way astatine the clip of the task inception successful 2017. Of these, much than a 100 trees were hacked down by chartless miscreants, bringing their fig to little than 900 by 2019. During 2020, nether the screen of COVID-19 fastener down, much trees were burnt, mutilated oregon axed connected the stretch, astir apt by the irate spot owners who were vexed with the delays successful the roadworthy widening project.
A survey by the Nature Lovers Group past enactment the full fig of trees burnt, damaged and uprooted astatine 101. A much caller survey successful November, 2025 by Vata Foundation, an NGO, counted 867 trees connected the agelong betwixt Moinabad and Manneguda, and 184 of them were burnt astatine the base. Of the 765 trees projected for retention, lone 729 stay connected the ground, and of these, 161 trees were burnt astatine the base.
Banyan No.734 collapsed connected Tuesday, aft 3 oregon much agonising days of occurrence searing done its trunk. Together with 2 gigantic banyans lying connected the borderline of the laterite soil, it volition soon beryllium a fig successful the database of felled/dead trees.
“At slightest 10 trees disappeared astatine the aforesaid location, going by the Google representation demarcation. This is simply a enactment of sabotage, and not 1 isolated instance. I volition not beryllium amazed if much and much retained trees are burnt successful the aforesaid fashion, which renders the full run purposeless,” says P. Uday Krishna the laminitis of Vata Foundation, who was the archetypal dependable against axing the banyans erstwhile the road connection came up.
