Krishnachand K By Express News Service THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Even as the general education department has issued instructions to clean up the school premises to ensure students’ safety, no attention is being paid to the threats posed by old trees. For instance, 40 students study at a pre-primary school at Neyyattinkara town in the district. There are five old trees in the school compound that could fall at any time. Recently, a tree fell on the nearby road following heavy wind. Luckily, there were no casualties. This is not an isolated case. At Ambalavayal in Wayanad, an old blackwood tree has been posing threat to the students of Cheengavallom Government LP School. Even though a local court had directed the revenue department to cut down the tree immediately, nothing has been done to execute the order. Revenue officials point to many legal hurdles to cut down the tree. M S Sugunan, PTA president of a school at Neyyattinkara said trees at the pre-primary school pose a danger to the students. “I reside near this school. I did alert the school authorities about the dangers posed by the tress several times. But they claim it is the duty of the municipality to cut down the trees,” he said. Bio-diversity parks turn hazardous O Shoukathali, general secretary of the Kerala Higher Secondary Teachers Union, said trees could not be cut down as they are included in the bio-diversity parks implemented by the education department. “Bio-diversity parks have turned hazardous for students. They have created a conducive environment for reptiles to grow in school compounds. Hence, the government should clean up the bio-diversity parks at schools to ensure students’ safety,” he said. But A Shahjahan, general education secretary, refuted the charges and said the parks do not create an eco-system of deadly reptiles, but they teach students about the flora and help form bonding with nature. “These parks won’t harm the students. Reptiles are found in cities too. So we need a mechanism to prevent such animals from entering the school compound,” he said.

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