Bhopal, April 28 -- It takes about ten minutes to fell an organically grown native tree. It takes about as many years for a replacement sapling to mature and begin contributing meaningfully to the environment. The arithmetic is simple, but often overlooked.
Across Bhopal, the effects of a significant reduction in the number of trees over the decades are beginning to become evident with harsher summers, dipping groundwater levels, and the growing frequency of summer fires.
The Smart City project at TT Nagar alone came at the cost of nearly 9,000 trees. Officials pointed out that several times that number were planted in compensation. However, without systematic tracking, the survival of these young saplings remains an open question.
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