New Delhi: The forest and wildlife department will empanel only agencies that have tree transplanter machines capable of uprooting trees with intact root balls and also hire a certified arborist so that the survival rate of transplanted trees improves.The department has now issued an expression of interest (EoI) to empanel agencies equipped with the specialised machinery, trained manpower and expertise.The department’s data shows that the survival rate of transplanted trees is low in Delhi. Of the 1,357 trees transplanted between 2019 and 2022, only 578 (42.5%) survived. A reply by the Centre in the Lok Sabha this month said nearly 43% of the transplanted trees for the central govt’s Central Vista redevelopment project “perished post-transplantation.” Govt said a total of 3,609 trees were transplanted, of which 1,545 did not survive.On Delhi govt’s policy, its environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa told TOI: “We will bring in professionals who have transplanter machinery and are trained in precise transplantation.”He added that Delhi govt’s first preference is that a tree should be transplanted rather than felled.TOI had earlier reported that currently empanelled agencies use backhoe loading to uproot trees. The process damages the roots and, at times, causes transplant shock, or stress to the tree after it is moved to a new location. A transplanter machine, on the other hand, carefully digs out and lifts an entire tree along with the roots and soil, making it possible to move it without causing much damage.The EoI, dated April 16, says the interested agency must own at least one commercially manufactured tree transplantation machine capable of handling trees with a girth of 150 cm or above. “The applicant must employ qualified personnel, including minimum one certified arborist or arboriculturist and minimum one trained tree transplantation machine operator. Additional experts such as horticulturists, soil scientists, environmental specialists, or landscape professionals will be considered favourably,” it says.The agency has to submit monitoring reports, including the number of trees transplanted, survival status and maintenance action. The EoI states that the forest department may impose a penalty up to Rs 57,000 per tree if there is a violation of guidelines, damage to trees, failure to maintain survival rate and non-submission of monitoring reports.At present, six agencies are empanelled for transplanting trees. An official said that these agencies too have to meet the new criteria.The tree transplantation policy says a minimum of 80% of trees affected by a development or construction project will be transplanted, and as much as 80% of the transplanted trees must survive after that.Delhi govt has also asked Forest Research Institute, Dehradun, to conduct a study on the process of tree transplantation, assessing the reasons behind the low survival rate.Tree activist Bhavreen Kandhari said: “A one-size-fits-all, machinery driven empanelment approach risks repeating past failures of tree transplantation, where low survival rates exposed the limits of contractor-led, engineering- centric models that overlooked ecological expertise, post-transplant care and accountability. It’s pretty much the same criteria as earlier.”She added that instead of this, govt should come out with a Tree Preservation Policy.