Concretisation of the soil leads to extreme depletion of ground water table and causes flooding over that concretized area during rains. When the water gets accumulated on the concrete, it leads to breeding of mosquitoes and waterborne diseases.
There should be at least 1mtr of open soil space around the tree.
Unfortunately, this story is not new. Concretisation did not happen today, yesterday or the day before. It is an old tale, with twists, turns and enigmatic implications.
Six years ago, there were people who saw those invisible tears, organisations who heard their inaudible moaning, activists who empathised with their unspoken agony. It culminated in the form of a petition in NGT (National Green Tribunal) back in 2013. But its been 6 years and still not much action has been taken.
De-concretisation has to be done manually not with any machinery. It has to be done very carefully and gradually so that the root is not hurt. When the concrete is taken away, the void needs to be filled immediately with good quality soil and manure.
Concretisation around the trees is harmful for root aeration and also prevents the percolation of water. It could immediately lead to death of trees or take upto a few years before the trees die.
It was therefore, brought to the notice of all Govt. departments under GNCTD and general public that concretisation of trees is an offence under Section 8 Delhi Preservation of Trees Act, 1994 and will also amount to violation of Hon’ble NGTs orders.
CLICK HERE FOR THE NGT ORDER TO DE-CHOKE TREES