Fearing theft, Forest dept shifts sapling planting site from lake in Sholinganallur

CHENNAI: It is not just the common man who has to fret and fume about petty theft. Worried that the steel cages erected as tree guards around thousands of saplings that it was planning to plant around Rama Thangal lake in Sholinganallur may get stolen, the Forest Department has decided to shift the planting site to the safety of Heavy Vehicle Factory (HVF), a Defence Ministry establishment, in Avadi.

Informing the decision to Chennai Metropolitan Development Plan (CMDP), a Highways Department wing that is carrying out the East Coast Road (ECR) expansion, the Forest Department recalled the initial decision was to plant 7,580 saplings around the Rama Thangal lake. But the lake receives huge footfall and hence, “there is a chance of miscreants stealing the tree guards. So, the CMDP is requested to allow the trees to be planted in Avadi HVF," said the letter sent a few days ago.

As part of the Rs 940-crore work to widen the ECR into a six-lane road, CMDP had cut 758 trees from the project area. As per Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) norms and High Court orders, the government department or agency that culls trees should plant 10 times that number – 7,580 saplings in this case – as compensatory afforestation. Also, the newly planted trees should be maintained for three years.

As is done by most departments and agencies, the Highway wing decided to hand over Rs 3.26 crore to the Forest Department to plant and maintain the saplings. However, the letter revealed that the funds have not been transferred in full. "Of the requested Rs 3.26 crore, only Rs 50 lakh has been deposited in the Forest Department account. As the season is suitable for planting, the CMDP should hand over the remaining Rs 2.76 crore," it added.

The Forest Department had earlier transplanted 97 trees from ECR to the bunds of Rama Thangal lake in October and the transplanted trees have started sprouting.