Yesterday afternoon, a group of people removed the ”apnu karadha” ( Crudia silanica,) tree which was listed as a highly threatened plant in the red data book on the Daraluwa Gampaha, where the Central Expressway is being built.
Some time back a group of Bhikkhus, covered the tree with robes and sewed it. But several people, including the Chinese, used two backhoes to remove the tree within ten minutes, according to local residents. Those who saw the incident said that the plant, which is hundreds of years old, was removed and loaded in the truck that came with the backhoes.
This tree was known as the only remaining Crudia zeylanica plant in the world, but later it was reported that several other plants have been reported from several places. The Road Development Authority had said that if the expressway is constructed without removing this plant, it will cost a lot.