Politicians in row over status of coconut tree

MUMBAI // Politicians in Goa are locked in a row over the status of the Indian state’s beloved coconut trees – after officials ruled that they were not, in fact, trees.

Goa’s legislative assembly last week reclassified the coconut tree as a palm to make it easier to cut down those that had become dangerous.

Opposition politicians reacted with outrage, claiming the ubiquitous plant would no longer be protected from widespread felling. Vijai Sardesai, an independent politician, expressed his disgust with a comment on Twitter that accused the state government, led by the Bharatiya Janata Party, of “environmental terrorism”.

The coconut tree – often referred to as “the tree of life” – blankets large parts of the tiny state and lines its famous pristine beaches.

Goa’s chief minister Laxmikant Parsekar, hit back, claiming some politicians were trying to use the issue as “blackmail”, in quotes carried by the Press Trust of India (PTI).

Mr Parsekar justified Friday’s amendment to “The Goa, Daman, and Diu Preservation of Trees Act, 1984”, saying it would make it easier to cut down “economically unviable” trees and replace them with newer ones.

The Goa government has also said it was necessary to remove the coconut from the list of protected trees, because some had become dangerous and posed a threat to human life and property. Officials were believed to have felt that the coconut palm could be reclassified because it did not have branches and thus failed to fulfil the criteria for a tree, the PTI said.