Barely a day after the High Court of Bombay at Goa permitted the translocation of a century-old banyan tree coming in the way of the Porvorim elevated corridor, environmental activists and locals expressed disappointment and said that they would file a review petition or move the Supreme Court seeking relief. A major concern among those aggrieved is that translocations have been failing. "It's as good as giving a death sentence to the tree", said one activist, referring to the five other trees that have been translocated earlier. The activists while seeking a minor realignment to save the tree argued that the government has given such concessions in the past for other projects.
The court, however, while clearing the way for translocation had directed the process to be strictly monitored by the forest officers while also taking a critical view of the translocations. If we may recall, a report by Director of Landscape Designer and Ecological Consultant Parag Mody warned that the previous translocation of Porvorim trees was poorly executed with little regard for the trees’ survival. The report pointed to the precarious condition of the relocated trees while calling for immediate corrective measures.
The ongoing saga surrounding the translocation of these banyan trees in Porvorim epitomizes the complex intersection of environmental conservation, urban development, and community sentiment. The belated outcry within a small section of people is based on failures to translocate trees, but underneath there are questions that raise doubts over the call.
The credibility of this opposition sentiment is questionable because the alignment was open to public scrutiny, and it was a known fact that trees would have to be relocated. Besides, the project has been ongoing for over five months. The opposition appears politically motivated because the proposed solution veers around realignment, an idea which has been shot down by the engineer working on the project. There is indeed a failure in handling the previous trees that were translocated, but that can't be the reason for stalling or realigning the project. We are talking of an elevated corridor, not a highway or a bypass.
If the translocation undertaken by Doctor Trees India Pvt Ltd has been a failure, there is a need to seek accountability and explore better options. Doctor Trees has been in business for five years and has translocated nearly 2,000 trees across India. The Forest department has been ordered by the court to supervise, but it is to be seen whether the department has the wherewithal and expertise to oversee the translocation of trees.
The urgency to preserve local natural heritage should compel authorities to seek expertise rooted not merely in adherence to protocol but in demonstrable success. The current trajectory signals an apparent disregard for the lessons that could be learned from prior missteps.
With environmental advocates aiming to file review petitions, one must ponder whether their cause is genuinely rooted in ecological concern or tinged with political undertones. The timing of this opposition raises questions. The need of the hour is to find the middle path and move ahead keeping in mind both -- developmental projections and environmental concerns. Ensuring the success of the translocation of the banyan tree should be on top of the minds of all stakeholders.
