Chennai’s count of fallen trees crosses 17,000

CHENNAI: The Greater Chennai Corporation’s uprooted tree count has gone up to 17,133, according to a latest release from the civic body.

Out of these, 12,135 trees have been cleared, said the release. Last week, 20,722 tonnes of garbage and 19,378 tonnes of tree waste have been cleared.

Even as the city corporation increased the number of workers on the field to 19,411 from the previously stated 18,000, aided by 3,200 workers from other districts and 743 lorries, 416 excavators, and 560 gasoline powered saws, almost 5,000 trees remain to be cleared.

The release also said that those damaged trees, which still have the potential to survive, had been identified.