Shaheed Minar loses 6 trees for Ekushey celebration

Branches of six Palash trees on the Central Shaheed Minar premises in the city have been chopped off for ensuring easy telecast of the Language Movement Day programme in the early hours of February 21.
Visiting the spot yesterday afternoon, this correspondent found the six trees standing without any branches. Another one, which was with colourful flowers, also had lost a few of its branches. Nobody could immediately say who cut those branches.
Some workers involved in decorating the Shaheed Minar said two stages would be set up on the roof of a one-story building just behind the trees.
One stage will be controlled by the state-run BTV for the live telecast of the event while Dhaka University authorities will use the other to deliver the programme commentary, said DU Proctor KM Saiful Islam.
Sources said the Public Works Department (PWD) authorities have cut the branches of six trees and a few branches of another Palash tree on the south part of the premises.
The PWD authorities might have chopped off the branches on request of law enforcement agencies, said Saiful, also the member secretary of Amar Ekushey Udjapon Committee, DU.
He said law enforcers in several meetings asked to make sure that no trees and their leaves create obstacles to their activities.
Also known as flame of the forest, the trees were planted to carry the spirit of the month of February. And their flowers represent the colourful and joyous season of spring.
Prof Syed Hadiuzzaman, director of the arboriculture department at DU, said every year ahead of February 21 these trees lose their branches.
Prof Md Abul Hasan, chairman of Botany department at DU said, this is the blooming season for Palash and cutting branches in this period is not acceptable.
The current loss might hamper the blooming of flowers next year, he added.
On February 21, government high-ups, including president prime minister, ministers, will pay their tribute to the martyrs of the Language Movement, 1952 by placing wreaths.

Courtesy of The Daily Star