Of cities and their trees!

What lies at the intersection of history, culture and ecology of urban India?
Native or imported?  Sacred and ordinary? Culinary and floral?  Favourites of various kings and commenters over the centuries?

They are the most visible signs of nature in cities.

Well, you are right I am talking of beautiful green tress in sprawling urban India and their importance since ages. The book under review, perhaps, could not have come at a more opportune time when, in the name of development, trees are being mercilessly cut down by different government authorities all across in Indian cities. Sadly enough, cutting a tree is the easiest of solutions for city planners and engineers. The authority that gives permission to cut trees in urban areas, issues such permissions without batting an eyelid!

We have seen that in New Delhi two years ago for the Sarojini Nagar redevelopment project large number of trees were to be hacked. Court intervened and it was stopped; then in Mumbai’s Aarey Colony, the metro shed construction claimed hundreds of trees and in the name of Smart City development in various parts of the country, the old trees are the instant falling preys. In 2016, a large number of nature-loving Bhopal citizens, took out tree marches to protest against cutting trees for a Smart City site. How can a city be called ‘smart’ without its old gorgeous trees is anybody’s guess. Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru, has shown through its studies how trees are fast dwindling in our cities and giving rise to a host of problems. But nobody gives a damn to it.

The two authors of this tiny but important book are professors in the Azim Premji University and have been working in the field of environment, urban issues and related sectors for a few years. While I have many books on trees in my personal collection, this is perhaps the first significant book that talks about trees and cities! Of course, not before the iconic Trees of Delhi (2005) by PradipKrishen. That was, in recent decades, the first of its kind book, well illustrated and talking about trees, their anatomy, families, seasons of flowering and their relationship with the city–New Delhi!

Former Governor of West Bengal, while acknowledging Cities and Canopies, says a beautiful line: ‘You close this book with just one thought: Thank you, trees, for just being what you are, where you are’. That to me is the meaningful gist of this book which underlines the importance of trees in times of climate change challenges such as global warming.

Divided into 22 highly interesting little chapters, the authors pick up a few well known trees such as jamun, banyan, palms, tamarind, amaltas, scarlet silk cotton, neem, peepul and drumstick and describe many uses of them, historical references and specialities in a highly absorbing manner. Then they also discuss, under chapter 10, ‘The great eucalyptus debate’ and go into the history of this known tree around which experts have always debated the pros and cons of having them or not, considering their environmental benefits and ecological disadvantages.

There are close to 900 species of eucalyptus found across many parts of the world–the vast majority of these originated in Australia. Because they are fast-growing trees that do not require much maintenance and can be sold for a lot of money, commercial eucalyptus plantations have now spread out across the world. After Brazil, India has the largest area under eucalyptus plantations. However, the tree has a chequered history of growth and removal in India. The British were enamoured with these trees. British rule in India was filled with anxieties about environment and health, especially in cities. They were focussed on getting rid of miasma or bad air which was believed to be the cause of many diseases. For most of the nineteenth century, the British believed that the quality of air was the culprit for malaria, typhoid, cholera, plague and other fevers.

Eucalyptus is a useful tree and produces paper, packaging wood and paper boards, besides having its medicinal value. But there are opponents of this tree like the great writer Mahashweta Devi who had called for ‘an anti-eucalyptus movement on a national scale’. Massive plantations on country side in the 70s and through the 90s were called by environmentalists as “green deserts”. Those Britishers who liked the tree species, however, did not like them for cities or towns as they grew tall and proved to be obstacles for electric wires as also during heavy rains.

But in Chandigarh when attempts were made to fell old eucalyptus in 2017, citizens protested saying the standing trees formed the cultural heritage of the city. In 2018, a plan to cut 3000 trees, most of which were eucalyptus, in Noida, was met with protests. The common accusation against this tree species is that it provides no habitat for biodiversity and birds and bees do not feed on their flowers or fruits.

Talking of trees and cities, the book argues: Indian cities derive so much of their character, identity and liveability from the trees that grow there. From tree-lined streets where we shop for vegetables and clothes to wooded parks and playgrounds where children play and adults gather to walk while they talk and sacred trees at intersections where nature is worshipped in the heart of madding crowd–our cities would be unrecognizable, unliveable, without their trees.

Speaking about the very famous neighbourhood tree, the familiar sight in our backyards, the humble drumstick is today touted as a superfood worldwide. In India, we are most familiar with the pods of the fruit, the drum ‘stick’, from which the tree gets its name. Different parts of the tree have found their way into our diet and lives since historical times. Kings and queens as far back as 150 BC, included the drumstick in their diets for improved mental and physical health. The tree is a powerhouse of vitamins, minerals and amino acids, the book says, quoting studies by the Hyderabad-based National Institute of Nutrition. Authors suggest that a city like Mumbai where urban children from poor families face child hunger, regreening the metropolis with drumstick trees could be a good idea.

Taking stock of all species included in the book would be difficult for me due to space constraint but I can’t help introducing two more species here in addition to what I have written about above. Authors begin the chapter twelve with interesting observations about prevailing urban scenario while describing the history and environmental values of golden chandeliers with buzzing bees–Amaltas. “Have you seen the maps of our cities in urban master plans and vision documents? They show increasingly smaller and smaller patches of green, indicating the decreasing spaces for trees. Our cities are turning grey as the built area is increasing. But just by planting flowering trees along city avenues we can transform them into multicoloured places of beauty, and not just on paper. What better colour to include but the gold of the Amaltas!

Amaltas is a deciduous tree native to India. The tree is medium sized and has a spreading, irregular-shaped canopy. It belongs to the legume family and is a relative of the familiar peanut and pea. The tree derives its fame from its spectacular golden blossoms that flower between April and June.  It’s a state flower of Kerala and the national flower of Thailand. There flowers attract many bees and butterflies and they help in pollination. Carpenter bees are specialised pollinators but they are not the only insects the Amaltas supports. For more about this beautiful tree, do read the book!

The other important tree that finds detailed mention in the book is the famous tamarind or what we commonly know in Hindi as’Imli’. 

Heroes come in different forms, even in the shape of trees. The city of Hyderabad suffered a devastating flood on 28 September, 1908. After heavy monsoon, a tropical cyclone resulted in the Musi river overflowing. The floods killed 15,000 people and destroyed 19,000 homes. The death toll could have been more but for a 300-year old tree which more than 150 people, mainly patients from an adjacent Osmania General Hospital, clinged on to. This tree, despite its the nick name Tamarindus  indica, did not originate in India. It came from far-off Central Africa. It came to India millenniums ago. And has many uses. Its fruits are of commercial use including for the poor tribals who collect and sell them. The average Indian housewife uses this in different forms and the old tamarind trees are found in many ancient cities from Varanasi to Indore. Indore city has an area called Navalakha whichhad, as per legend, as many as nine lakh trees of tamarind. Many of them are still seen standing proudly in the city. Old rulers, the Rajas and Maharajas, had a sense of the future demands. They planted trees fully realising the multifarious uses and benefits of the trees in cities. 

Do cities need trees? There are heated debates about the need for trees in cities. Some feel that trees in the cities are a nuisance, offering a number of reasons. They shed leaves and fruits on roads and parked vehicles; they take up space on pavements and block street lights at night, etc. Many argue that trees are a luxury. 

The authors, however, argue that trees in cities have innumerable advantages and they form part of healthy environment. While the Britishers also underlined the need for trees in cities, increasing vehicular pollution and rise in temperature can (now) be combated only through various types of trees in our surroundings. A Bengaluru study showed that street trees significantly reduce suspended particulate matter and Sulphur Dioxide levels. In general, trees with large leaves and dense canopies have more surface and can absorb more particulate matter while trees with rough surface, with hairs or ridges, are better at tackling air pollution effectively. 

Trees also hold water underground through their roots and they benefit cities through increasing the ground water table in the long run. If cities don’t have water they would perhaps die. 

The book is a nice attempt to further increase interest of those urbanites who are not aware of trees and their specific advantages in cities while simultaneously learning about their origins, history, species and flowering times, etc.

Happy reading during the lovely Spring when tress attire themselves with new leaves and flowers in some places of India. 

*[The author is a veteran political journalist and environmentalist]