Experts at a discussion yesterday urged the government to restrict introduction of alien species of trees and animals into the biological diversity of the country as they harm biodiversity and agriculture. Mass awareness should be created along with the long-term plan to protect the biodiversity of the country, they added. The discussion was organised by Water Resources Planning Organisation (Warpo) to mark the International Day for Biological Diversity in the city with its Director General (DG) M Enamul Haque in the chair.

THE RECENT move of the Tamil Nadu Forest Department to re-introduce largescale cultivation of eucalyptus trees in the state invites stiff resistance from environmentalists on the ground it would create ecological imbalance. Experts have always raised concern over the extensive cultivation of this species. "Monoculture of eucalyptus cannot be recommended," said Supraja Dharani, Tree Foundation. "If the intention of the forest department is to increase forest cover in the state, it should plant indigenous species of trees and maintain the bio-diversity of the region," she added.

Miscreants felled about 100 fruit-bearing plants, including over 50 coconut saplings, at a farm in Vaddy-Merces. The incident, which is believed to have occurred in the wee hours of Friday, became known only in the morning when the daughters of the owner, Anthony Pereira, went to the farm. Though the exact reason behind the incident is not known, Mr Pereira and his family suspect that the incident could be linked to a tenants' association, of which Mr Pereira is the vice chairman.

Residents of AN-AM Block of Shalimar Bagh here are waging a war to save their greens that include 80 full-grown trees and a local park that they claim would be destroyed if the Government goes ahead with its plans to construct a multi-storey underground parking lot to accommodate the growing number of vehicles. The residents have also appealed to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and senior officials to save their greens.

Fallen Trees, Clothes Stuck In Lines Wednesday morning's thunderstorms and heavy downpour brought a pleasant weather change along with frustration of disappearing power supply in the Capital. Ironically, it was day when the Northern Grid had excess power available, yet lights and fans remained off in many homes. According to discom sources, a number of outages were reported from all across the city due to trees and branches falling on the distribution lines. In some areas, residents also complained of short-circuiting.

Windstorms and heavy rainfall often leave Lutyens' Delhi littered with uprooted trees and fallen branches. New Delhi Municipal Council says

A squall with a wind speed up to 104 kmph caught the city unawares on Wednesday morning and left behind a trail of destruction

Strong winds, coupled with rain, played havoc with the green cover of the city. Several trees fell, all across the Capital, leaving people to struggle with snapped power lines and blocked traffic Wednesday's storm ripped through Delhi, playing havoc with the green cover in various parts of the city. Heavy winds followed by rain uprooted trees and left people struggling through heavy branches blocking the roads. In certain areas, trees had collapsed on electric lines and transformers, disrupting power supply.

jumbo amphibians: Over 37 million years ago, elephants used to be semi-aquatic mammals. Researchers have revealed this after investigating the lifestyle of two elephants from the Eocene period. They

When Bijaya Chandra Panda wanted to cut down a few trees on his 8 hectare (ha) plot he thought he was well within his rights to do so. Little did he realize that it would take him 300