The mighty fall

The fall of the 300 year old Banyan tree

The mighty fall

Bangalore loses a 300 year old Banyan tree. Angry residents voice their anger.
A 300 year old tree located in a park in Basaveshwarnagar is reported to have fallen down at 11:45 on Friday night. The tree provided shelter to over 1000 birds and was extremely popular among the joggers and the walkers. It is from the family of the Sicus Alba trees. It was a picnic spot for many. Krishna an ex corporation official who was incharge of building the park says"It provided a microclimatic condition in the entire area. It is indeed a tragic event."
Sessions for senior people under the big tree like yoga, laugh to a health life were conducted. "Now that the tree is no more we will perhaps not be able laugh anymore" says Raghavendra who is a part of the laughing club.
Prathima, an architect says, "I have grown up playing around this park. I have several memories attached to it. It is quite an unfortunate event." All the residents of the area have complaints against the horticulture department. Venkatesh says, "If the horticulture had taken necessary precautionary steps, we would have not lost such a heritage tree." But D.N .Subbana, BBMP Horticulture superident says, "The roots were weak hence the tree has fallen.We had taken several precautionary measures. In spite of our best efforts the tree could not withstand the enormous weight and hence fell down."
Almost one-fourth of the park has been damaged. The fencing and benches need to be redone. Subbanna says, "We have already begun the work this very morning and we assure the residents that the park can be used within a few days."u00a0
But an angry Subbalakshmi cries, "Can you bring my tree back? Every day I used to worship the tree. I didn't want to be alive to see this day."
Over 10,000 people visited the spot to have a last glimpse of the mighty tree. It was quite a tragic day for not just the residents of this area but also to the monkeys and the birds who have lost their homes.