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Closer to extinction: A hoarding may have cut short 30-year-old endangered tree’s life in Baner
On Monday morning, one of the 51 remaining Indian Ber trees in Baner was found felled by unknown miscreants. Residents allege that the tree was cut to make way for a hoarding board
A 30-year-old fully grown Indian Ber tree on the corner of Vijay Sales, near Pallod farms phase 3, in Baner was hacked in the wee hours of Monday. Following this, Pune municipal corporation’s (PMC) tree authority members conducted a spot visit and assured action against those involved in cutting of the tree.
The Baner Ber tree is native to the Baner area of Pune and according to experts, only 50 of those remain following the cutting of the tree near Pallod farms. Experts claim that a few years ago, there were over one lakh Ber trees in Baner. But due to rapid urbanisation and deforestation, the number of trees dropped drastically.
Anil Sable, an official of the tree department, Aundh ward office, said,“The tree has been hacked for a purpose which we are yet to identify. It is a crime as the culprits have cut down an endangered fruit-bearing tree without any permission. We will take strict action against the culprits.”
According to some residents, the tree must have been cut to make way for a hoarding site on Pride Accord building in Baner. Residents are of the opinion that it is the only possible explanation for the act as the skeletal structure of a hoarding board was also found on the Pride Accord premises.
Following orders from S Tummale, assistant tree officer, Aundh ward office, Sable has started an inquiry into the issue and has already prepared a panchnama.
“We will file a panchnama and then contact PMC’s Sky sign department to check if anyone had filed for setting up a new hoarding. We haven’t received any such request to remove a tree and we would have not allowed that. We would have rather transplanted the fully grown tree, than cut it down,” said S Tummale.
“The tree was not in anybody’s way and was not a hindrance in any form to the passers-by. We can’t understand why someone would cut it down,” said Reshma Desai, a resident.
Aparna Pathak, a resident of Pallod farms phase 3, also saw the tree fallen on the footpath while dropping her daughter to school.
“It is murder, a crime, and the culprits should be punished for felling a fruit-bearing tree,” said another resident, Vinita Kapahi, who has been planting trees in the area for quite some time now.
Pravin Thete, who is working on preserving the Baner Ber, said he felt sad looking at the grand old tree fallen on the footpath. “People are so brutal that they even mercilessly cut down endangered plant species like the Baner ber. The tree which was cut is at least 30 years old. It never posed as a hindrance to anyone. It stood on the side of the road and often offered shade to the students waiting for their school buses,” said Thete.
Marathi bor, Kharki bor, Khobri bor, Narali bor and Nadikathchi bor are all varieties of the fruit once eaten off the trees in the area, and are sold by small-scale vendors across the city.
