Chengkurinji - tree on verge of extinction

Q.  What is Chengkurinji related to?
- Published on 25 May 16

a. Tree species
b. A place
c. A tribe
d. A folk art

ANSWER: Tree species
 
  • In Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) study report facing extinction are two trees with ‘Travancore’ tag: Gluta travancorica and Sizygium travancoricum .
  • The former is a hardwood (local name: chengkurinji or red tree) found only at a particular elevation of the Western Ghats in Kollam district and the latter a mangrove associate found only in some pockets of Kerala, mostly the southern parts.
  • The chengkurinji grows only in the Shendurney Wildlife Sanctuary in Kollam. The tree, used to be indiscriminately logged, is now a protected species. Though there is a United Nations programme to propagate the tree in the area, it has not met with the desired success. Among the remaining trees some are getting uprooted owing to natural causes.
  • Sizygium travancoricum faces extinction because the trees were ruthlessly felled for medical applications connected with rheumatics. But the felled trees were not replaced.

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