The Saga of the Rain Tree

There stands a once majestic rain tree just left of our house at Taleigao, a recently gentrified village in Bardez, Goa. More than a hundred years old, it soars high into the sky and is home to squirrels and a myriad species of birds. It welcomes itinerant travelers and us, when we return from our travels.

A couple of months ago, a cohort of men, armed with saws and ropes, attacked it early in the morning and lopped off some huge branches on the road facing side. When accosted they had nothing to show and left as soon as we asked them for their papers and their authorisations. The branches of the magnificent tree, forlorn and broken lay on the road until they were carted away some weeks later.

Three days ago, at 9 in the morning, a nondescript man in a blue checked shirt, accompanied by five stocky helpers, armed with ropes, saws, and drills arrived. Some of them climbed the tree and took up vantage positions to start work on the remaining branches. Forewarned some of us rushed down and accosted the leader of this small destructive force; he apparently had the permission to cut our rain tree and produced a photocopy of an unconvincing authority letter. Shouted at, he remonstrated for some time and thought it best to make a quick exit.

Just as peace seemed to return, a squad of six police officers, including two policewomen, arrived. Officious in bearing, they asserted the legitimacy of the tree-cutting permission and asked the residents to maintain order, not to interfere in important forest department work. Anxious we were but not powerless. Cecille Rodrigues, a renowned dancer and social worker, rallied the residents in a spirited legal defence against the bureaucratic onslaught. Facing us on the other side was a politically influential local strongman; this explained the unusually prompt response from the largely somnolent Goa Police. The day ended in a deadlock, with the tree still standing.

The next morning, the battle resumed with renewed vigour. A dozen policemen and senior officers arrived with a formidable machine, a hybrid of a crane and a bulldozer. Ignoring our claims of an obtained stay, they launched a ferocious attack on the tree. Cecilia and her team scrambled to court, finally securing the decisive stay just after noon.