Developer Ashwin Rao spent six to eight months relocating roughly 800 mango trees to a dedicated plot of land instead of felling them for a 150-acre project's link road. Rao's decision was shaped by a 2015 collaboration with the Vata Foundation, an organization founded by Uday Krishna that has moved over 17,500 trees across India. Translocation protects vital environmental advantages that new saplings cannot instantly replace, though success relies heavily on logistics, root care, and long-term maintenance. The foundation continues this work across the country, including upcoming conservation partnerships with the Indian Navy in the Damagundam Reserve Forest.
Key points
Translocating mature trees provides immediate carbon-storage advantages that newly plante…: Translocating mature trees provides immediate carbon-storage advantages that newly planted saplings cannot quickly reproduce.
Tree relocation demands rigorous technical execution regarding root systems, orientation,…: Tree relocation demands rigorous technical execution regarding root systems, orientation, and aftercare to ensure specimen survival.
The Vata Foundation has expanded from rescuing individual fallen school trees to coordina…: The Vata Foundation has expanded from rescuing individual fallen school trees to coordinating major conservation projects with the Indian Navy.
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When a link road threatened around 800 mango trees on a 150-acre residential project in Hyderabad, developer Ashwin Rao faced a difficult choice: allow the trees to be cut or find a way to preserve them. He chose the latter, bought another plot of land and arranged to move the trees. The process took six to eight months.
As reported by The Indian Express, Rao’s decision was influenced by an earlier experience in 2015, when a nearly 100-year-old banyan tree in Zaheerabad faced removal. With help from the Vata Foundation, an organisation that works to protect and relocate trees, he moved the tree to vacant land he owned. That experience taught him that relocating a mature tree involves more than digging it out and planting it elsewhere. Its roots, orientation and growing conditions must also be considered.
Why moving mature trees is not as simple as planting saplings
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