The majestic maple trees of Jammu and Kashmir — better known as chinar or locally as boonyi — now have their own ID cards. In a novel initiative by the J&K Forest Department in partnership with the J&K Forest Research Institute (JKFI), thousands of heritage chinar trees have been assigned Tree Aadhaar numbers across the region. A digital plate with a QR code has been affixed to the trees and when scanned provides a lot of information on them.
The initiative aimed at documenting and conserving the majestic trees, whose numbers have dwindled significantly over the last few decades, was launched in 2021. A total of 28,560 trees have been geo-tagged to create a comprehensive database. Official statistics reveal that between 2021 and 2022, 8,000 chinar trees have been geo-tagged and assigned unique Tree Aadhaar numbers. In 2022-23, 10,000 chinar trees got such numbers. An additional 10,000 chinar trees were being geo-tagged during the current fiscal year.
“We have affixed metal digital plates with QR code, using Geographical Information System(GIS) to the trees,” Syed Tariq, Project Coordinator at FRI told businessline,
A total of 28,560 trees have been geo-tagged to create a comprehensive database.
He said that a quick scan will reveal details such as location, height, girth, canopy, health status, ecological threat and pest presence of a tree.
A total of 28,560 trees have been geo-tagged to create a comprehensive database.
The plates were not nailed into the trees, instead they were secured using springs, ensuring that they don’t get absorbed deeper into the bark as the trees’ girth grows. Tariq added they were planning to come up with a Chinar Atlas too.
Dwindling Chinars
The Chinar tree is a majestic deciduous species from the Platanaceae family, which attains a height of 30 metres. The trees whose leaves turn a vivid shade of golden and red in winters are an inseparable part of the region’s storied cultural heritage. Over the last few decades, the chinar had seen a significant drop in numbers.
The government imposed a blanket on the felling and lopping of the chinar trees in 2009. In 2019, it further proscribed the nailing of hoardings onto the chinar trees. Tariq said the digital documentation was an attempt to preserve the trees and they were trying to geo-tag each tree, even those located in restricted zones.
