PWD officials cut dry branches of the banyan tree on the Bhanja Vihar campus on Tuesday. Picture by Gopal Krishna Reddy

Berhampur, July 29: The public works department today started cutting down the dead and dry banyan trees on the Berhampur University campus in the wake of a mishap that claimed a life yesterday.

Rangeilunda resident T. Nandini Kumari Devi, 18, was killed and Rashmi Rekha Samantrai, 19, was injured when a 15-ft long branch of a dead banyan tree fell on them in front of the State Bank of India office on the Bhanja Vihar (Berhampur University) campus yesterday morning.

“We have deployed 10 professional tree-cutters to cut the tree after the local tehsildar and block development officer had asked us to do so,” said assistant engineer of the department Sasank Sekhar Mishra.

Berhampur University vice-chancellor Deepak Behera said: “Earlier, we had requested the public works department to cut four trees which are unsafe on the university campus. As the road on which the killer tree existed belongs to the department, it is their discretion to take any final decision.”

However, Mishra said that though he had received a letter from the university, it had not mentioned how to meet the expenses on cutting the trees. “It requires more than Rs 10,000 to cut one tree. From which fund, we would meet the expenses,” he said.

As the trees are located on the university campus, it is the moral duty of the varsity to meet the expenses, he said.

Rangeilunda resident Ranjan Samantrai, father of Rashmi, who has suffered injury, also visited the spot today and urged the officials to cut the tree shortly.

Local resident Surya Patnaik threatened to start agitation if the university authority failed to cut all of the four trees, which are in dangerous condition. “The forest department cut the teak, sandal and other valuable trees, which had fallen during Phailin in October last, in Bhanja Vihar. But why had it overlooked the banyan trees which have no value?” he asked.