58 in Pulwama, 18 in Anantnag chopped in 6 years
Srinagar: To facilitate the construction of the North South highway, the previous state government felled hundreds of Chinars. Experts are now sounding alert that in two decades, valley would be without such glorious trees unless strict measures taken to protect them.
In Anantnag district, 33 chinar trees fell along the alignment during the highway construction, out of which 18 trees have been cut down. In Pulwama district the government permitted cutting down of 58 chinars.
The state authorities at the time had stated that the permission to cut Chinars, locally called Bouin, was granted purely in the public interest and on the request of the project director, National Highway Authority of India (NHAI). The trees, it was said, were creating hindrance in the smooth execution of the work on national highway.
In Pulwama area the assessment was made by a committee comprising district floriculture officer, chief horticulture officer, sericulture development officer and range officer.
An amount of Rs 20, 84, 800 assessed by the committee as timber value of the tress
was deposited by NHAI in the concerned treasuries.
In Anantnag, the quantity of timber was 5924 Cfts and wood 471 Quaintls. The project director NHAI has deposited an amount of rupees 24,63,8000 towards compensation in favor of Roads and Buildings Anantnag as timber value of 18 felled chinars.
The state authorities said that the director floriculture Kashmir has been asked by the divisional administration to provide saplings of chinar for the plantation on the either side of the highway.
The number of this majestic tree of Kashmir is declining due to continuous felling for road-widening and other developmental projects.
According to government data, in 2007 there were 38,401 of the trees in valley but environmentalists claim that the number is much less than what the government is claiming.
Interestingly the former chief conservator of forests Mohammad Sultan Wadoo in his book published in the year 2007 titled, The Trees Of Our Heritage stated that there are 17,124 chinars in Kashmir and 746 are cut every year. He had remarked further that if such process continues, valley will be without chinars in 22 years. (KNS)
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