Protect Palace Grounds, says green study

Protect Palace Grounds, says green study
By Asha Krishnaswamy, DH News Service, Bangalore:
Palace Grounds, a major lung space in the heart of Bangalore, looks harshly brown in a zone that supposedly meant to be a sanctuary for life and ecology.

Since the grounds were opened for private commercial activities, the ecological disaster has totally outweighed economic gains.

The government must immediately declare this area as a protected area and a cultural/heritage site, says a study conducted on the environmental condition of Palace Grounds. The study has been conducted by a team of research scholars of Department of Environment Science, Bangalore University. The study was commissioned by the High Court Empowered Committee headed by environmentalist A N Yellappa Reddy.

The study team, headed by Dr N Nandini, Principal Investigator, has conducted an extensive survey of flora and fauna of Palace Grounds spread across 475 acres. The study, guided by Yellappa Reddy, was conducted to assess the environmental vulnerability of Palace Grounds with respect to exploitation of lands. It included analysis of recent satellite imagery of the Grounds as well as the ground study.


The grounds, for the study purpose, was divided into upper north, middle north, and the middle west, the Fun World, wetland and south west sectors. More than 80 per cent of the land in upper north where number of national and international exhibitions are held, is devoid of permanent vegetation. The events entail movement of heavy materials and massive scaffolding works. The top soil is getting washed away by rains. At least 60 vehicles ply in 10 minutes on Ramana Maharshi Road, bordering the zone.

The middle north has a series of plots distributed for various commercial purposes ranging from academic, clinical, industrial, sports, entertainment and clubs. Most of the economic activities are taking place at the cost of loss of rich biodiversity. Private clubs are still functioning there servicing several programs including weddings and other cultural activities causing noise pollution.

The middle west sector is less damaged compared to the other two. The Fun World sector has been completely degraded of natural tree canopy. The wetlands sector is one of the two biodiversity hotspots that continue to cling on to existence within the grounds. The Palace Lake is home to many indigenous water snake species. The south west sector is the only enclave that harbours remnants of the natural and age-old historic tree forest in the premises.

The satellite imagery of the Grounds confirms the grim reality of the environmental catastrophe in the area. The environmental deterioration of the grounds’ biodiversity is not a private question that should be resolved by the members of the Wadiyar family anymore, but a moral, ethical, and legal case for an ecological survival of the Bangalore metropolis.

The grounds are strategically located in a place that can directly affect the health and lives of more than a million city dwellers living in the immediate surroundings, the report says.

SUGGESTIONS

* Declare Palace Grounds as protected area
* Ban commercial, industrial and service activities
* Halt on land acquisition and exploitation
* Steps to document and protect all historical trees
* Prohibit vehicular traffic inside the southern sector