The sprawling Kaya Kalp Vriksh (Great Banyan Tree) at the remote village of Cholti Kheri , Khera Mandal block, Fatehgarh Sahib district, will be the first biodiversity heritage site of Punjab, as the state government has decided to issue a notification in this regard.

Facts :

• Spread across an area of 3.5 acres in Cholti Kheri village of Fatehgarh Sahib, the site of a ‘30-decade-old’ banyan tree — popularly known as ‘Kaya Kalap Vriksha’ — is set to be declared the first biodiversity heritage site in Punjab.
• The Punjab Biodiversity Board (PBB) has finalised a proposal to get the site of this tree listed as a biodiversity heritage site (BHS) for its conservation and management under Section 37 of the Biological Diversity Act (BDA), 2002 and rule 7 of Punjab Biodiversity Rules, 2016.
• The tree is situated on private land, but owners of the land have willingly given their land for declaration of the tree as a heritage site.
• The tree is approximately 300 years’ old, spread over 3.5-acre land. The ‘magical’ tree represents a complete ecosystem supporting rich biodiversity, including peacocks, owls and many other birds, reptiles such as snakes, monitor lizards, garden lizards, insects, arthropods, millipedes, nematodes, epiphytes, bryophytes, fungi, algae and lichens.
• The villagers believed that it had spiritual powers. It is believed that any person in the past who tried to stop the spread of the tree had to face grave misfortunes. The usage of waste wood or fallen leaves of the tree is considered equally unpropitious. Thus, the great banyan tree continues to grow undisturbed.
• The site is being conserved and managed with the active support of Fatehgah Sahib district administration and the Biodiversity Management Committee set up by the Board.
• Dr Amita Prasad, IAS, additional secretary, Union ministry of environment, forest and climate change, lauded the district administration for recognition of the community-based conservation model of the site as the best practice and said that she would implement this model in other states as well.
• The Board has already initiated the process to get the site declared as the first biodiversity heritage site of Punjab. The village had already passed a panchayat- level resolution for the declaration of the Kayak Kalp Variksh as a BHS and also ensured its conservation and management with the technical support of the PBB.
• Even a documentary of the site has been recently prepared by the Paris-based production house, “Camera Lucida” with the support of the PBB for TV series titled ‘Tree Stories: Most Remarkable Trees of the World’.

Other Biodiversity Heritage Sites of Punjab :

In case of Punjab ,the State Biodiversity Board has identified 15 locations across the state as Biodiversity Heritage Sites. These sites cover the areas of agricultural, livestock and horticultural importance, community conservation sites and wetlands outside protected areas.The Punjab Biodiversity Board has identified a number of biodiversity Heritage Sites:-
 

• These include Inami Baag site in Hoshiarpur district with large diversity of mango species.
• Largest Banyan tree (Kaya Kalp Vriksh) site in Fatehgarh Sahib district.
• Chatpat Bani forest area (conserved by local community) in village Kataru Chak, on Pathankot-Amritsar National Highway.
• Areas falling outside Harike Wildlife Sanctuary from village Gagrewal to Goindwal Sahib on river Beas as dolphin heritage site for conservation of dolphins.
• Patti, Amritsar and Ferozepur area for native livestock species like Nili Ravi.
• Mand area for conservation of Hog Deer population.
• Sultanpur Lodhi area and area between Nangal and Ropar for conservation of fish biodiversity.
• Aam Khas Baag and Ram Baag in district Amritsar.
• Baradari Garden, Patiala for Simbal Tree & Banayan tree (which are about 120 years old) and Ferns.
• Shalimar Garden, Kapurthalaorthern parts of Shivaliks as biodiversity rich pockets.
• Dhar block in district Pathankot & Nurpur Bedi area in Rupnagar district for Vultures,
• Pandori (area between Keshopur Miani and Kahnuwan) in district Gurdaspur as a sacred grove
• Area falling outside Kathlaur Kalsian Sanctuary along Ranjit Sagar Dam.
• Keshopur Miani & Magamudian in district Gurdaspur for Sarus Cranes.
• Dargah Peer Baba Majnu Shah Ji(a sacred grove) at village Tibba Taprian (District Rupnagar).
• Baba Sukhia Ji (a sacred groove) at village Kartoli (District Hoshiarpur).