Storm leaves N Dinajpur denuded of greenery

Prithvijit Mitra & Subhro Maitra | TNN



Raiganj: Mammoth uprooted trunks, heaps of branches and twigs and mounds of earth wrenched from their base greet you almost everywhere at Karandighi and Raiganj. As the twister raced through the villages, wreaking havoc, it left this trail of toppled trees. They fell everywhere – in backyards, along the paddy fields, on the edge of the highway and deep inside villages.
The district administration has no mechanism for taking a count or even to remove them and clear the roads, many of which remained blocked till Thursday night. The damage done to the environment by the tornado could be substantial, said officials.
While some put the number of uprooted trees at 50,000 in Karandighi alone, others said the figure could cross 2 lakh in the five affected blocks of Raiganj, Karandighi, Hemtabad, Kaliaganj, and Goalpokhor 2.
The tree-lined avenue at Karnajora in Raiganj that is flanked by the bungalows of senior district officials including the district magistrate, additional DM, and the divisional forest officer, resembled a graveyard of greenery. Huge uprooted trees lay strewn all over. Two banyan trees – one from the DFO’s bungalow and the other from the SDO’s quarters on the opposite side formed a bridge across the road. Both trees damaged the boundary walls of their respective premises, making them collapse and landing the overhead network of cable and electrical wires in a tangled mess. It has taken nearly two days for workers to clear the debris.
The most common tree species in North Dinajpur are sissoo, simul, siris, akashmoni, khair, lali, khadam, mingiri, eucalyphus, sidha, jarul, sal, sheora and arjun. Teak is also available sporadically in some patches. The forests in this district are mainly plantations. Sal is mainly of coppice origin. The total forest area is hardly 0.19 per cent of the total geographical area of the district. It has taken a further beating following the tornado. Sal , arjun and siris trees are estimated to have suffered the highest casualties. “It is difficult to arrange for the trees to be removed.
We can clear some on the borders of the highway but elsewhere villagers must help themselves,” said a forest official.
While officials are at a loss and can’t decide what to do with the trees, villagers have taken it upon themselves to remove them. At Kumargari in Raiganj, villagers have formed a committee to supervise the operation. “We don’t have machines to cut the trunks and remove them. So, we are lopping off the branches and pushing the trunks as far as we can to make room for vehicles to pass. We have no idea if the administration is going to take up the job,” said Budhmohan Das, a resident of Kumargari.
Hundreds of branches and trunks lying along the NH 34 have been taken away. While some are being sold, the rest are being whisked away to be used as fuel at home...published in TOI on 17.04.2010