A 650-year-old Chinar tree in Chattergam, Budgam district, Jammu and Kashmir, is among the oldest of its species in Asia, the Jammu and Kashmir Legislative Assembly was informed on Wednesday, 23 September 2026. The disclosure came in response to a question raised by Budgam MLA Aga Syed Muntazir Mehdi, placing the ancient tree's conservation status firmly on the legislative record.

Condition and Protection Measures

The Forest, Ecology and Environment Department told the Assembly that some older and dried branches of the tree had naturally fallen over time, while the remaining portions continue to stay green. The government has installed an iron fence around the tree's critical root zone to prevent soil compaction, root suffocation, and vehicular movement in its immediate vicinity.

Under existing legal safeguards, even cutting a single branch of a Chinar requires prior permission from the local administration. Activities such as hammering nails into the trees, affixing signboards, carving on the bark, and damaging the bark or roots are strictly prohibited.

Why Chinar Numbers Are Declining

The department attributed the decline in Chinar numbers across the Kashmir Valley to a combination of natural ageing, diseases, pest attacks, felling for developmental activities, shrinking land availability, and rapid population growth. Threats including urbanisation, illegal logging, and climate change continue to exert pressure on the species.

This is not an isolated concern — conservationists have long warned that the iconic tree is losing ground across the valley at a pace that outstrips natural regeneration.

Kashmir's Living Heritage

The Chinar (Platanus orientalis), locally called the 'Booni', is the official state tree of Jammu and Kashmir, celebrated for its majestic canopy and fiery red autumn foliage. The tree takes approximately 150 years to reach full size and can grow up to 30 metres tall with a massive trunk.

Widely planted and popularised across the Kashmir Valley by Mughal Emperors Akbar and Jahangir — most famously at the Naseem Bagh in Srinagar — the Chinar features prominently in Kashmiri art, papier-mâché crafts, and literature, and is a defining presence near historical shrines and Mughal gardens.

Government's Broader Conservation Drive

Beyond the Budgam tree, the Jammu and Kashmir government has undertaken a comprehensive census, geo-tagging tens of thousands of Chinar trees across the union territory. Each tree has been assigned a unique digital identity to enable continuous health monitoring. Cutting or felling a Chinar remains strictly illegal without formal permission from the district administration, and even standard branch pruning requires technical oversight, including the application of protective paste to cuts.

With the Budgam tree's extraordinary age now officially on record, attention will likely turn to whether the state's digital census and legal protections are sufficient to secure its survival for the next century.