A memorial for the city's missing trees

A memorial for the city's missing trees
By: B V Shiva Shankar Date: 2009-02-06
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Bangalore:

Transparency International says corrupt officials are to blame for soaring temperatures and plan to observe a minute's silence

Sized down: A big banyan tree chopped off brutally near Cubbon Park pics/ Ramesh HS
Tomorrow, Transparency International will hold a memorial service for the city's slain trees.

The global civil society organisation will observe a one-minute silence at the stump of a tree felled by Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), near Cubbon Park. This is to protest against BBMP officials who are selling valuable trees to the timber mafia dirt cheap.

"The timber value of the tree chopped is not less than Rs 6 lakh," said M F Saldanha, retired justice. " But the contractor grabbed it after paying just Rs 2,000 to the BBMP."

He said, BBMP officials had felled at least 2,000 trees in the last couple of months and virtually gifted them to the mafia.

"We are protesting against the blatant corruption," said B V Shetty, general secretary, Transparency International, Karnataka chapter. "And we request all to join us."

The city was losing greenery – and all because of corruption. "Temperature in the city is shooting up to 38 degree centigrade at the end of winter," he said. "It's the corruption levels that have prompted the destruction of Bangalore's trees."

Interestingly, BBMP has cut only the healthy trees, leaving behind the dead ones.

"The dead trees are the really dangerous ones and need to be cut," said Saldanha. "But BBMP officials won't do that because there are no takers for that. They are only selling off high valued trees for obvious reason."

But BBMP officials refute the charges. Ravikumar, range forest officer, said, " We decided to cut the trees only after receiving complaints from citizens. The banyan tree had to be chopped because many had complained that it would fall and create problems."

He denied that BBMP had left the dead trees and cut the valuable ones. "In fact, there are no expensive trees in the city and there is no question of earning from them. We allow contractors to take away timber so that they can meet the expense of chopping the trees."

Tale of a tree

A mahogany tree standing near Koshy's on St Marks Road was worth Rs 16 lakh. But, BBMP permitted Khader Bhai to chop it and take away the timber in 2002. Khader had paid Rs 2,000 to the civic body for the contract.

However, Khader could not lay his hands on the tree because an old woman selling groundnuts beneath the tree protested. She launched a hunger strike and prominent citizens like Justice Saldana backed her.

"If the tree is still there, it is thanks to a selfless fight," said Saldanha.