HC appoints revenue secretary as nodal officer for seemai karuvelam eradication drive

Chennai: Expressing dissatisfaction over state govt’s failure to implement its directions on the eradication of the invasive seemai karuvelam (Prosopis juliflora) trees, Madras high court on Thursday observed that govt department secretaries had not held any meetings with the former judges nominated to monitor compliance.A division of Justice N Sathish Kumar and Justice T Bharatha Chakravarthy then appointed state revenue secretary K S Palanisamy as the nodal officer to coordinate implementation of its orders and directed him to appear before the court on July 31 with necessary suggestions. The bench also directed Tamil Nadu govt to allocate adequate funds to remove the invasive trees.The directions were issued while hearing a public interest litigation filed by MDMK general secretary Vaiko seeking the removal of seemai karuvelam trees across the state. Appearing in person, Vaiko submitted that he, along with farmers and environmental activists, had removed the invasive trees in several places, including Andipatti in Theni district. He alleged that revenue officials in some places had objected to such efforts, discouraging public participation, and that permission was often granted only after intervention by the district collector.Accepting his submission, the bench directed revenue authorities to grant permission within 24 hours to voluntary organisations seeking to remove seemai karuvelam trees from govt land. It also encouraged volunteers to emulate Vaiko by actively participating in the tree removal drive.State govt informed the court that nearly 90% of the seemai karuvelam trees on govt land in Pudukkottai district had been removed, while progress in the northern districts remained slow. The court said that this demonstrates that it is not impossible task with proper resources and intent. “Tamil Nadu can be declared Prosopis-free with coordinated efforts. It should be made sure that no other tree other than invasive species are cut,” the bench observed.