The Goa government has said it needed to amend the law as there were many coconuts trees that had grown precariously and could fall on people or property and cause damage.
The coconut tree is no more a tree, says a song that protests against the Goa government's recent decision to remove the palm from a list that protects trees from being felled without permission.
The BJP government in the state has removed the coconut tree by amending the Preservation of Trees Act, drawing angry protests from activists, environmentalists and Opposition parties.
"Distilleries want to use coconut groves to set up their factories and unless they cut them down they cannot. This amendment helps them do that," alleged social activist and Aam Aadmi Party member Dr Oscar Rebello.
The Congress party claims its government brought the coconut under the preservation act in 2008 after rampant illegal felling of these trees. This meant that a coconut tree could only be cut with permission from the Forest Department, if the tree posed a threat to life or was dying.
"Now the law allows anyone to cut the coconut tree as it is no longer preserved," Congress spokesperson Sunil Kawanthankar alleged.
The Goa government has said it needed to amend the law as there were many coconuts trees that had grown precariously and could fall on people or property and cause damage, but clearing those involved a complicated and lengthy process of permissions.
It also said it has adequately protected the coconut by increasing the penalty on its illegal felling from Rs 1,000 to Rs 1 lakh per tree.
"I presume that people want to cut coconut trees to sell off land or to further projects... it is distressing," said fashion designer Wendel Rodericks, one of Goa's more famous residents.
Goan singer Friz Love's new song, is now drawing attention on YouTube. "Coconut tree is no more a tree, Goa government has made history," he sings.