BMC inquiry panel inspects Chembur tree crash site to see if roadwork weakened roots

Mumbai: Three days after 11-year-old Vihaan Srivastav was killed when a tree crashed on his school van on Chembur’s 11th Road, the BMC-appointed inquiry committee visited the accident site on Friday to examine the circumstances that led to the collapse.“Prima facie assessment indicates that structural roots on the excavated side may have been cut or damaged, triggering internal decay that gradually spread from the roots to the base of the trunk — damage that could not have been detected through routine external inspection. This would have left the tree dependent on roots on the opposite side for stability. Heavy rainfall and gusty winds on the day of the incident may have ultimately caused the weakened tree to collapse,” said a civic official.The BMC administration has constituted a two-member committee comprising deputy municipal commissioner (special engineering) Purushottam Malavde and deputy municipal commissioner (engineering) Shashank Bhore to investigate the incident. The panel has been directed to submit its report within eight days, consult experts and recommend measures to prevent similar incidents in the future. An official said the civic inquiry team was accompanied by a tree expert, who conducted a detailed inspection of the fallen tree and its root system to determine the cause of the failure.

Meanwhile, on Friday, workers were seen trimming overgrown branches in the locality as the civic body intensified its precautionary drive. Garden department officials said the tragedy increased concern among local residents, many of whom have demanded a comprehensive inspection of roadside trees. Following the tragedy, the BMC has already begun reassessing trees located along roads that underwent concretisation works.Dr Kaushik Desai, a resident of Govandi, said that it is high time that the BMC activate advanced locality management groups in the city. “ALM members could be the eyes and ears of the BMC when properly formalised, and they could be asked to flag such concerns like damaged trees,” said Desai.