Corporator claims MSRDC has not taken care of the trees they transplanted while making the 1.25-km Bandra walkway

The Maharashtra State Road Development Corporation (MSRDC) is rushing things to complete its already delayed Rs 7.8-crore beautification project at the Bandra Reclamation promenade, apparently caring little about violating green norms in the process.


The transplanted palm trees on the Bandra Reclamation on Bandra Worli Sea Link route. (Below) The trees were replanted on the reclamation in December 2010

According to local corporator Vilas Chavri, the MSRDC had uprooted trees along the 1.25-km walkway to make way for an open air theatre, the Saptdeep Stambh or seven-island columns, Bollywood Celebrity Walk and Board Walk, Sheesh Minar or Tower of Destiny, an area for meditation, and sit outs.

According to the MSRDC officials, they had transplanted 270 trees as against the target of 364. In all, there were 378 trees that flanked the walkway. MSRDC officials claim they had transplanted trees back in the same vicinity in a systematic grid technique.

Contesting their claim, Chavri, also a member of BMC's tree authority committee, said, "The MSRDC is not looking after the trees. Many residents have complained of the sorry condition of the transplanted trees. It seems there is no arrangement for watering them."

Chavri said he had shot a letter to the deputy municipal commissioner of the garden department.
Asked whether he had received Chavri's letter, the deputy municipal commissioner (garden department), Chandrakant Rokde, said, "I am on leave and will look into the matter once I join duty."

Any agency like the BMC has to look after the trees after they are transplanted. If any agency or institution hacks trees, it has to plant double the number of trees axed.

Many environmentalists believe that transplanting trees uprooting trees from one place and planting them in some other place is not a good idea since the survival rate of such trees has not been encouraging in the city.

Isaac Kehimkar of Bombay Natural History Society (BNHS), an NGO, said, "The condition of trees depend on the time (or season) of transplantation.

Monsoon is the best time. Mostly palm or coconut trees do not survive transplantation. Also, a lot of care should be taken during transplantation and after it. The trees need to be constantly monitored."

Ek Cutting!
7 Islands
The seven island columns or the Saptdeep Stambh will be seven sculptural columns depicting the seven islands of Mumbai Colaba, Old Women's island, Bombay, Mazgaon, Worli, Parel and Mahim.

The Other Side
Refuting the corporator Chavri's claim, MSRDC Chief Engineer Subhash Nage said, "We are taking care of the (transplanted) trees. We have replanted them as per our design. We have transplanted all the trees that were uprooted. And it was done to fulfill the needs of the design. There has been no violation of green norms from our part."

Project Delayed
The project, which has overshot its January deadline, is now expected to be completed by March. The cash-strapped MSRDC had been spending around Rs 35 lakh for maintenance and electrification of the present garden at the Bandra Reclamation.