A living peepal tree.

A living peepal tree. Image by Sharada Prasad CS / CC BY 2.0

Officials in India say the tree that US President Barack Obama planted there three weeks ago is not dead. It just looks dead.

The peepal tree was awash with leaves when Mr Obama planted it at the New Delhi memorial to Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi. By Thursday, though, it was just a single lonely stem.

The lack of leaves has been giving Indian officials sleepless nights, with the local media criticising them for allowing the tree to die.

But officials say peepal trees often lose their leaves at this time of the year. BC Katiyar, a government horticulturist, said it is a seasonal phenomenon after he and other officials visited the tree and pronounced it in good health. He said it would send out shoots soon.

(Press Association)