Mayor directs health audit of trees along city roads

Kolkata: Mayor Firhad Hakim has issued instructions for a health audit of the trees along city roads, including those places that are favourite among the morning walkers. Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) will check trees along city roads, while the Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority (KMDA) will inspect trees on the banks of Rabindra Sarobar and Subhas Sarobar. KMDA, of which Hakim is the chairman, happens to be the custodian of these two waterbodies. The move assumes significance against the backdrop of the deaths of two workers of Howrah Municipal Corporation (HMC) after a eucalyptus tree fell on them in front of the office of HMC administrator Sujoy Chakraborty on Wednesday. According to Hakim, there are many leaning trees in the city that need trimming.

“A health audit of trees will be done. The KMC’s Parks and Squares department will audit trees in Kolkata. I will ask the KMDA to audit trees at Rabindra Sarobar and Subhas Sarobar,” said Hakim. In May, a man was crushed to death when a tree fell on him at Rabindra Sarobar while he was resting under the tree. The audit will identify trees that are leaning, have signs of disease or termite infestation, or are otherwise in poor health. Trees identified as hazardous may be trimmed to reduce weight or, if necessary, felled and replaced with more suitable species. “A health audit across the city will take months, if not years. Botanists have to walk across the city and examine each tree closely. It is time-consuming,” said an official of the Parks and Square department of KMC. He added that the audit will be an ongoing process, with regular inspections and maintenance.