Srinagar, May 22 -- Recent weeks have brought unsettling scenes from several parts of Kashmir.

Chinar trees stand cut, pruned into hollow forms, or pressed tightly against fresh layers of concrete and bitumen along expanding road corridors.

Baramulla to Kupwara, Srinagar to Bandipora, Ganapora Kralgund in Handwara, Pulwama near the district court stretch, Thokerpora toward Pakherpora, Lalbazar near G D Goenka School, all present similar images of changing roadside landscapes.

The language used in field discussions often circles around pruning, widening, development, while the trees themselves show signs of deep stress.

I have moved through these stretches over recent weeks, speaking with engineers, workers, and local residents while o...