Fifty-year-old Banyan tree in TN's Ariyalur saved from the axe as NGO youths transplant it
ARIYALUR: A fifty-year-old banyan tree near Sendurai that was set to be chopped down to make way for road widening was given a new lease of life after a group of youngsters from Ariyalur transplanted it, winning much appreciation. The tree was located in Poyyathanallur village in Iluppaiyur panchayat near Sendurai beside a pond.
With plans afoot to widen the Ariyalur-Sendurai road to four lanes, the Highway Department had decided to cut down the tree since it was obstructing track widening. As the department began cutting off the tree's branches on March 1, a group of youths from NGOs Pasumaisolal and Solaivanam, who were informed of this, decided to come together to save the tree. The youths approached the department with the proposal to transplant the tree, which was duly approved.
The fire department also provided assistance with watering the tree, after which the branches were removed, and with the aid of an excavator, transplanted the tree 30 feet away to its present spot. The whole process took two days, and the tree was sprayed with the necessary medicine and water throughout the process. "Trees are the need of the day.
There are two reasons why we transplanted this tree. First, transplanting will revive the tree, which will benefit bio-diversity. The whole process cost us only Rs 42,000," said S Elavarasan, founder of Solaivanam. "A banyan tree takes at least 12 years to grow. Only then will the birds get food and only then will biodiversity beneift. But since we transplanted it, it will start bearing full fruit next year. We transplant the tree for some benefits like this," he added.
Solaivanam Coordinator Jaka Venkat said, "Following the transplanting, the authorities should water and maintain the tree properly. We have already transplanted two trees in the district. One of them has grown well, but the other hasn't been tended to properly.
Apart from that, we are also planting and maintaining 5 lakh saplings in the district. If anyone wants to transplant a tree, we are willing to do it." When TNIE contacted, Ariyalur Highways Department Assistant divisional Engineer S Chitti Babu said, "We know how difficult it is to grow a tree in a dry place. So we cooperated with the youths to transplant the tree. This is a great achievement and we are very happy."