Ancient century-old tree burnt down in Gazipur

An ancient tree caught fire and most of it was burnt down in Behaiduar village of Karihata union under Kapasia upazila in Gazipur. The incident occurred early last Sunday. Upon receiving the news, fire service personnel brought the fire under control after about an hour of effort. However, the fire service stated that as most of the tree has been burnt, it is no longer in a condition to survive. It could not be immediately ascertained how the fire originated.

Local resident Hasim Munshi, who claims ownership of the tree locally known as 'Chorul' or 'Chodul', claimed that the tree is about 400 years old. He mentioned that his grandfather gave the tree to his father, and it has been on their land ever since. Local residents said they heard from elders that elephants were once bought and sold under this tree. According to the locals, there was no older tree than this in Kapasia. Local residents are saddened by such damage to the ancient tree.

Tree owner Hasim Munshi suspects that someone might have deliberately set the fire by putting fuel under the tree. He demanded the identification and bringing to justice of those involved in the incident, and has also given a verbal complaint to the Union Parishad (UP) member. Local UP member Kafil Uddin stated that he has received a verbal complaint and action will be taken accordingly if a written complaint is received.

Reported by 1 outlet. See the original sources below for full details.