Fitting a banyan tree in Mumbai’s bonsai-sized homes may be daunting if not impossible, but the tree is part of the sale at the Sanjay Gandhi National Park’s (SGNP) Majhi Vasundhara Abhiyan’s Van Mahotsav 2021. The festival of trees where people can come in and buy saplings is month-long, ending in July. Though the park is open from 5 am to 9 am daily according to government guidelines, these stalls with trees are stationed at the gate and people can buy these from morning to evening.

Said Subhajit Mukherjee, founder Mission Green Mumbai, also at the forefront of the SGNP effort, “Some of the trees will grow to six feet and more but the prices are sapling size! A tree that costs Rs 500 outside is being sold for R50. We are also accessible compared to several big nurseries which are located on the outskirts of the city.” On Friday, the nursery had sold a whopping 4,000 neem trees in one day. They were priced at Rs 20 each.