Concrete Jungles Chewing Up Trees - A 'Warm(n)ing' Issue At Stake!

Temperatures are soaring high and none of us are spared from the blistering heat. Every six months , the scenario with the urban concrete jungles keep changing. We have become slaves to comfort and we are ready to do anything for it. We are happy going about in our cool cars with the air conditioners on and we do not have the time to even spare a thought for these widely expanding concrete jungles which are eating up the greenery at a rampant rate.

There once existed a time when people used to cut down forests to bring large vacant lands under cultivation. Today, we do not spare the agricultural lands either. Just take a time to sit back and rewind a little. If you've been to Bangalore about ten years ago, I'm sure you would've loved the place primarily for its climate, especially if you are from the 'land of humidity' - Chennai. But today , you can find that 'mission urbanization'  has succeeded to the maximum extent possible and there are hardly any trees in places which used to be lush green. Coimbatore is just another victim of urbanization to a slightly lesser extent than Bangalore. A whopping 50,000 trees have been cut in the recent years in Bangalore, thanks to the rapid infrastructural development projects like the metro rail. The metro rail projects in Kochi, Chennai and Hyderabad have also come under the fuming ire of environmentalists for cutting down trees mercilessly.However, the Chennai Metro Rail Ltd (CMRL) has promised to plant 15,000 trees to compensate for the loss but whether this takes to immediate effect, is a question which can be answered only by time.

The overall picture doesn't look bright. We need infrastructural development and I do not deny that at all. But this cannot continue at the cost of the environment.

Here's a simple strategy. Say, Chennai has lost around 10,000 trees over the last one year due to various reasons. Imagine that each one of us who owns a car in  Chennai promises to plant a tree every six months, we would match the number without a doubt and exceed it by a pretty decent number too. This is just one small example and imagine the power of a million when engage in saving their city.

We believe ONE CAN CHANGE! Plant a tree, it is an investment that you can always fall back on..