Post the 2001 earthquake, the Government had introduced the Development Plan. This plan involved widening of roads in the city which involved cutting of the roadside trees. With an effort to save the trees, in 2003, a proposal was submitted to the Government either to transplant the trees or to design the roads in such manner so that the trees are placed in the centre lane of the roads. One of the most important considerations for the transplantation was the arid soil of Bhuj and there was no previous experience of transplantation in Kutch area. The extreme urgency of moving these trees left a limited time on hands to “prepare the trees” for the transplants. Lack of technology at local level was a further constraint. This was overcome by providing the expertise from the Garden Department of Godrej & Boyce Mfg. Co. Ltd. The root ball was maintained to the extent possible while removing the trees and secured by wet jute cloth. The trees were relocated in the same area, to the extent possible and very few trees were relocated in the distance beyond 1 KM from the original place. A total of about 340 trees were transplanted out of which about 50% still survive.
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