MARGAO
Want to beat the heat, why not plant a tree, was the message on Earth Day a couple of years ago.
Welcome to the historic Lohia Maidan, Margao where a decades-old mango tree, which had not only added beauty to the historic place symbolising free speech and expression, but also provided shade and relief from the sultry heat, has gone missing.
The Lohia Maidan played host to two old mango trees, one located near the entrance to the Maidan and the other that stood tall near the stage. As the beautification work of the Lohia Maidan inching its way to the last stage, one no longer finds the mango tree around.
A glance at the photographs show that the tree has been chopped down and towed away into a vehicle, believed to be in an Municipal vehicle, only throwing questions who had authorised the contractor to clear the tree from the place and whether any permission from the Forest Department was obtained to chop the tree.
When The Goan called up Margao Municipal Chief Officer, Agnelo Fernandes to shed light on the missing mango tree, he came up with a startling revelation “ that the contractor got in touch with him to inform that the mango tree has uprooted and the same is being lifted away from the Maidan.
A glance at the pictures shows that the tree has been chopped and cut down as evident by the remains of the bark left behind at the site.
When the Chief Officer was confronted with the picture, clearly indicating that the tree was cut with a saw, Agnelo argued that the tree might had come down first after getting uprooted before the contractor moved in to cut away the tree with equipment.
Incidentally, the Chief Officer said neither his office had given any permission to cut the tree nor was any permission obtained from the Forest Department before cutting the tree.
When The Goan drew his attention that a Municipal vehicle had transported the wood and branches from the Maidan, the Chief Officer said the Municipality might have come in the picture only after the tree was cut down after it was uprooted.
Director, Urban Development and Member Secretary Goa State Urban Development Agency (GSUDA) Gurudas Pilarnekar expressed shock and surprise over the missing mango tree. “The Agency did not tell the contractor to cut down the tree. The tree had acted as a shade for the crowds attending programmes at the historic Maidan,” he said, while promising to order an inquiry into the missing tree.
File photos of the Lohia Maidan just days before the tree went missing shows that the tree had stood tall near the stage while the beautification works were underway.
There’s been no dearth of controversies surrounding the beautification of the historic Lohia Maidan, Margao. First, the beautification work itself was delayed for close to two years, prompting then Governor Satyapal Malik, a socialist, to personally descend at the Maidan to pay respects to Dr Ram Manohar Lohia.
Lohia Maidan hit the news earlier after Dr Lohia’s statue and the freedom fighter’s memorial were found in the debris after the monuments were brought down ahead of the beautification work.
Both Lohia’s statue and the memorial have returned back at the Maidan, but the missing tree seemed to have taken away the beauty as well as the shade from the historic place.
