The mangled remains of the auto after the tree fell on it near Santipur bus stop on Friday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Dec. 26: The residents of Santipur were today left seething with anger over the PWD’s alleged “callousness” that led to the destruction of a very old Gulmohar tree.

The tree, locally known as krishnachura, crushed a three-wheeler parked on the road as it fell.

Traffic came to a halt for nearly an hour on the busy M.G. Road that connects the city with several important institutions, including Gauhati University, IIT Guwahati and Lokapriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport.

The residents alleged that the tree fell because of the PWD’s negligence while constructing a drain in the area.

“The construction of the drain near the age-old tree resulted in the tree falling down. More trees will fall if scientific methods are not implemented while constructing drains,” said Bhabesh Chandra Choudhury, a 55-year-old resident.

He said he had been seeing the tree since he was a child. “I have no idea how old this tree was but I have seen it since my childhood. I will miss its flowers this summer.”

The tree fell around 3pm when the road was chock-a-block with traffic, an official at Bharalumukh police station said. “Fortunately there was not much damage to life and property. An auto-rickshaw parked under the tree was crushed,” he added.

The driver of the vehicle managed to escape because the tree fell down slowly.

The police official said prompt action was taken and the road was cleared in about half-an-hour.

Farooq Hussain, a businessman who was repairing his vehicle at a nearby garage, said the tree fell down with a tremendous sound.

“The earth shook beneath my feet and I thought it was another blast,” he said.

A PWD official said the drains were being constructed along MG Road to prevent artificial floods during monsoon.

He admitted that the tree fell down because digging for the seven-foot-deep drain near it loosened the soil around it.

The digging, with the help of excavators, had started in the area only yesterday.