Southern States - Tamil Nadu-Chennai   

Tree helpline yet to gain popularity in Chennai

By P. Oppili

CHENNAI APRIL 10 . The Chennai Corporation's recently launched `Tree helpline' is yet to become popular among residents. Right now the authorities are getting calls only with regard to non-removal of garbage from the residents.

Instead of waiting for someone to complain about tree felling, the Corporation has to identify tree lovers in the city and seek their assistance in protecting full-grown trees. This is the first and foremost duty of the `Helpline', nature lovers feel. Finding the tree lovers in the city is not a difficult task, as the Forest department has appointed nearly 80 `Honorary Tree Wardens' a few years ago. Obtaining the list from the department, the Corporation can utilise the services of these volunteers to conduct awareness programmes for school children and also in residential areas. Such a move will help the civic body in bringing down the tree felling cases in the city, they suggest.

Though a difficult task, the civic body should take up the work of numbering the trees in the city and classify them according to their status — exotic, avenue species and endemic species. The Corporation also has to maintain a register in which information about the species of grown up trees and their location has to be maintained. Whenever complaints regarding felling are received, with the help of the register, the authorities can easily reach the area and stop the felling, says a tree lover.

Lack of stringent penal provisions under the Madras City Municipal Act with regard to illegal felling is one of the major lacunae, resulting in increased felling activities. Similarly a `Tree Advisory Committee' has to be formed which can guide the Forest department and the civic body whenever they take up greening efforts, says an Exnora spokesman.

The Corporation authorities feel that whenever people come across incidents of illegal tree felling, they should immediately call the helpline (98403-50000). After launching the helpline, the authorities have received only a couple of calls with regard to tree felling. Rest of the complaints were about the accumulation of garbage in the residential areas, they lamented.

Recently the Highways department had taken up the work of removing the old concrete slabs from the pavement and replacing them with new ones. Putting concrete slabs around a grown tree would block water from reaching its roots. Ultimately this would choke the tree to death. The helpline should intervene and stop such activities that threaten the survival of the grown trees, they say.

Recently the Corporation received complaints from the residents of Saidapet about felling of an avenue tree. Action has been initiated against the offender, say the authorities.

The State Forest department showed keen interest in the appointment of `Honorary Tree Wardens' to proclaim that they also have interest in protecting the trees. But, soon after the initial enthusiasm vanished, the department lost interest and the genuine tree lovers were disappointed. Unlike the Forest department, the civic body should make the helpline function to really protect the grown-up trees, add the nature lovers.

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