AROUND three months ago, the Aunty Park in Clifton Block 5 was surrounded by tall and thick conocarpus trees that provided shade to people coming for walking/jogging. Suddenly, 95 per cent of these trees were cut without advance replacement plantation, causing shock and disappointment to the people, some of whom have been regularly visiting the park for many decades. Thereafter, the scorching heat coming directly from the sun forced many of them to move to other parks.

The reason cited by the management for the cutting down of conocarpus trees was that they consumed lots of underground water and were not as healthy as some other species. Some visitors to the park voluntarily decided to plant the ‘other’ species of trees at their own expense in order to reduce exposure to the sun. Ironically, the management has so far not removed the stumps and roots of the conocarpus trees, which have again started growing.

The whole purpose of cutting the trees stands nullified, and the retention of the stumps of chopped-off trees will also hamper the growth of trees being planted by the volunteers. The park administration should complete the task of removing the stumps and roots of the conocarpus trees without any further loss of time.

Parvez Rahim
Karachi

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2026