Around 20-odd well-grown trees in the corporation park were felled causing agony to residents of Nehruji Nagar on Tuesday as they had been maintaining the park for the last 10 years.
It turned out that the TANGEDCO had pulled down big trees as they were causing hindrance to laying of a new line.
G Jayabal, an ex-serviceman, said these trees had offered shelter from hot sun during summer. “They could have trimmed the branches instead of pulling down the trees in full. Ever since the park was declared open, residents have been maintaining it. There was a guard also,” he said.
S Rajendran, retired CTO, who uses the park regularly for a walk in the morning, said, “it attracts over 200 visitors every day including senior citizens, who come here for walking, while children use the play area. We were dejected to see the felled trees. At a time when the mercury level has been rising sharply during summer, such an act of cutting down trees will cause more harm to the environment.”
When contacted, Assistant Director of TANGEDCO, Dindigul, admitted that it was wrong to pull down the trees. “The moment I came to know about the incident, I visited the park and apologised to the people. We have promised to clear the park and walking path and plant 25 saplings in place of felled trees,” he said.