HYDERABAD: A peepal (Ficus) tree, aged over 60, which was relocated last year during the construction of the Medigadda barrage has managed to survive and new leaves have started sprouting from the trunk of the tree. During the construction of the Medigadda barrage, the Irrigation Department officials found that the peepal tree would come in the middle of the reservoir and also that it would submerge once the Godavari water flows into the barrage.
In the meantime, Kaleshwaram Lift Irrigation Scheme (KLIS) Engineer-in-Chief (ENC) Nalla Venkateswarlu felt that the tree should be protected and hence it has to be relocated to a safer place on the banks of Godavari. Fort this, the ENC contacted an expert from Hyderabad and under his guidance, the tree was relocated to a safer place.
The officials took the first picture of the peepal tree on April 25, 2019, just before its relocation. Meanwhile, local irrigation officials felt that the peepul tree died after its relocation. Six months after relocation, the officials took another photograph on Sunday, which showed leaves sprouting from it, said Sridhar Rao Deshpande, Officer on Special Duty (OSD, Irrigation) to Chief Minister.