It took just a few hours. Some of the few remaining trees at Hosaguddahalli on Bangalore-Mysore Road were felled early on Sunday to pave way for widening of the road. By noon, the tree trunks were being cleared.
According to a senior official in the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), three trees were felled as they were blocking the proposed widened carriageway. “We felled the trees only after obtaining the permission of the Forest Department. The road widening work is going on in full steam,” the official said.
The official added that the BBMP was confident of completing the road widening work by the end of December. Several deadlines have lapsed without much progress in the widening work taken up on this arterial road.
The delay in the work was attributed to lack of coordination among the various government agencies — Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd. (BSNL), Bangalore Water Supply and Sewerage Board (BWSSB), Bangalore Electricity Supply Company (BESCOM) and Karnataka Power Transmission Company Ltd (KPTCL).
The official claimed that the BBMP was coordinating with these agencies to ensure that the shifting of utilities is completed at the earliest. “We are all working on the road work and shifting of utilities simultaneously to reduce any further delays,” the official added.
