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DCC to fell 52 old trees in Gulshan

Helemul Alam
Dhaka City Corporation is felling a number of old trees in city's Gulshan area, which some residents are complaining is a farce in the name of beautification of roads and improvement of the drainage system.
DCC officials say that the trees, many of them decades old, are to be cut down as they are obstacles to the efficiency of the existing drainage system.
Fifty-two trees in total are to be ^cut, down in the posh residential area of Gulshan, including 25 trees on the median on Gulshan avenue from Gulshan Shooting Club in Gulshna-1 to the the Pakistan High Commission building in Gulshan-2.
DCC's zonal executive officer of zone-9 Shamsuzzaman said another reason for felling some trees are complaints and objections by different individuals,
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societies and organisations.
“We are felling 25 trees on the median of Gulshan Avenue due to objections from GrameenPhone who are responsible for the road beautification work of the area, as they have been complaining for the past year that the trees hamper the beautification plan," he said.
“The DCC's storm sewerage drain lies under the median of Gulshan Avenue and the roots of the trees hamper drainage of rain water," Shamsuzzaman said.
“Among these 52 trees, 13 are already dead,” he pointed out.
There is also the consideration for situations where some larger roadside trees are taking up the space of residential houses or obstructing the household activity in some order or the other.
The zonal authorities do not decide the fate of the trees however. The decision to cut the trees was approved by the Dhaka Mayor on July 14 and the work order given to
Mohammad Nizam, a contractor, on July 17.
Interestingly, he was asked to complete the work within a week of receiving the work order.
DCC Mayor Sadeque Hossain Khoka told The Daily Star yesterday that the decision is part of regular procedures and he approved the scheme following initiatives taken by zonal officials.
He said that the matter will be looked into and added, “If we find that the reasons cited for cutting down the trees are wrong, we will stop the felling."
Environmental experts have meanwhile questioned the DCC decision.
Abu Naser Khan, chairman of Save the Environment Movement, said they are against cutting of trees anywhere. Where the whole city is barren of greenery, there has to be more justification for felling such old trees for, if not anything else, climatic reasons.
“If the trees were indeed blocking the drains then couldn't alter-
native steps be taken to correct the drainage system without felling such old trees?” he asked.
“The roads and drainage systems are important for us but so is saving our trees for the sake of the environment,” he said
DCC officials however could not say if the drainage system could have been improved with steps other than cutting down the trees.
Nizam won the contract of the work through an auction held on July 9 for a price of Tk 1,56,100. The assessment of the trees' cost by the forest department was about Tk 1,54,669.
Shiraj a resident of Gulshan for the last 35 years said the tree near road-89, that is to be cut down, dates back to the preindependence days. He claims that the tree is in no way obstructing any drainage work.
Another resident also asked if the DCC could not have thought of other steps to improve the drainage ratherthan cuttingoffthe trees.
Mohammad Shahjahan, the tree
feller hired by the contractor, said that he has already cut down six trees in the area over the last five days.
"We will start next on the large tree near Gulshan road-89,” he said adding that the tree must be about 50 years old.
The 25 trees on the median on Gulshan avenue include raintrees, debdaru, banyan, akatha, epil-epil, mango, chatiyan and berry trees. Others include three trees adjoining the British High Commission in Baridhara, one kishnachura near road-27, block-J in Banani, eight acacia trees on Madina Avenue road island, one mahogany on road-18, block-B in Banani, one cotton tree at the corner of road 24 and 39 in Gulshan, a mango tree at the corner of road-24 and 30 in Gulshan and a krishnachura and mahogany tree at road 56 and 70 in Gulshan, a mango tree on the DCC field behind Wonderland in Gulshan, seven debdaru trees at CWS (A)-l, Gulshan rqad-34 and one debdaru tree in Gulshan road-79.