Road Development Corporation (RDC) has revealed the trees in Ameenee Magu will not be cut down and instead will be replanted on Kudagiri Picnic Island.
RDC began the practical work of redeveloping Ameenee Magu in Male' City on September 12. The redevelopment of one of the busiest roads in Male' will be carried out in 13 segments. RDC has now commenced the first segment of the project, closing off a part of 100 metres of the road in Henveiru that connects to Boduthakurufaanu Magu.
RDC states it has been planned to repair Ameenee Magu in an environmentally friendly manner without damaging any trees. However, RDC has noted that Ameenee Magu holds a number of main cables of water and sewerage pipes as well as other networks of the capital city. The biggest issue the company has pointed out is that Ameenee Magu does not have adequate drawings to show the depth of the road. As a result, RDC has been facing challenges since the first day of excavation. RDC said the water level of the road is shallow and the depth of the road does not match the data collected regarding the water and sewerage networks.
Regarding the removal of the trees on Ameenee Magu, RDC revealed the roots of the bigger trees have damaged several cables, adding a decision has been made to relocate the trees to Kudagiri. RDC said it will give importance to making Ameenee Magu greener during the redevelopment project.
The contract for the redevelopment of Ameenee Magu was signed between RDC and the Ministry of National Planning, Housing and Infrastructure on July 3. The project involves paving the whole 1.7km length of Ameenee Magu with asphalt and installing a new stormwater drainage system. The project was contracted to RDC at a price of USD5.5 million. The duration of the project is seven months.