With no progress on the decision to fell trees on Kanakapura and Mysuru roads for the extension of the Metro network, pressure is mounting on the Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike Forest Cell to accord permission using their “discretionary power” and bypass a tree committee.
In a recent meeting with the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Ltd. (BMRCL) engineers, Forest Cell officials were pulled up for the “delay” in according permission, while a newly joined tree officer was threatened with transfer, said an official at the meeting.
It was in November 2015 that BMRCL proposed to cut 313 trees on Kanakapura and Mysuru roads for the extension of the Metro work. After three failed public consultations, a 12-member tree committee was formed in March 2016. However, the committee last met in July 2016, and since then, pressure mounted on BBMP’s tree officers to proceed with the cutting of trees.
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Citing a ₹2-crore daily loss to BMRCL owing to the delay in tree cutting, the Urban Development Department was in favour of scrapping the tree committee as “they had not arrived at a consensus,” said an official at the fiery meeting.
The anger had stemmed after a renewed proposal by the Metro to cut 45 trees on the stretch — apart from 44 trees that were cut in November last year without the consent of the committee. After the meeting, Forest Cell officials gave permission to cut 15 — all of which will be cut in the coming week. “We have no choice but to use discretionary powers of allowing for less than 50 trees to be cut at a time based on the demand of the Metro,” said an official.
Initially, BMRCL had sought for the cutting of 190 trees on the 6.5-km stretch from Puttenhalli to Anjanapura Road Cross and 123 on Mysuru Road, which was to be “monitored” by the tree committee. Since then, however, other stretches — including Byappanahalli to Whitefield; and Jayanagar to Electronics City — have not been placed through the committee or public consultation. “According to the law, we have been seeking permission from BBMP to proceed with our works. We have organised the construction to adjust to the permissions given,” said Pradeep Singh Kharola, MD, BMRCL, who refused to comment on the tree committee.
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‘Will approach court’
Having been virtually sidelined, members of the tree committee have said they will approach the High Court against BBMP for subverting court judgements which had directed the setting up of tree authority and public consultations on any infrastructure project claiming more than 50 trees.
“We will file a contempt petition. The panel has been set up for a reason, and by resorting to subversive methods, Metro has lost its credibility,” said Vijay Nishanth, committee member. He said the recommendations of the panel, including transplanting or pruning 70 trees, instead of entirely chopping them, on Kanakapura Road as well as mapping of the compensatory plantations, were not being followed, he said. D.T. Devare said after permission had been accorded by BBMP to fell 45 trees in November, the committee had sought information about how the committee could be bypassed. “We filed an RTI, but have not received any response,” he said.