Brakes on tree felling

Brakes on tree felling
Bangalore, DH News Service:
Friday, May 08, 2009, 1:30 [IST]

The division bench headed by Justice N Kumar directed the BMRCL not to fell trees along both Lalbagh as well as the Lakshman Rao Park boulevard, where the metro rail alignment is planned.


The High Court has directed the Bangalore Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) not to fell trees along the Lalbagh-R V Road stretch until further orders.

Hearing a petition by Sriramegowda, former deputy mayor of the City and others, who had moved the High Court against the alleged indiscriminate felling by BMRCL, the division bench headed by Justice N Kumar directed the BMRCL not to fell trees along both Lalbagh as well as the Lakshman Rao Park boulevard, where the metro rail alignment is planned.

The petitioner had sought to prevent the felling of trees and had stated that it would go on uninterrupted unless the work was not stopped at once.

The petitioner submitted that the trees were fully grown and had been planted several years ago. He submitted that no public policy on tree felling should be made without taking the opinion of the people.

The court directed the petitioner to visit Lalbagh to know the kind of trees that were being felled and how many of them had been cut. The petitioner, who submitted the pictures of the axed trees, said that he could not get the numbers.

The legal officer of BMRCL submitted that 19 eucalyptus trees had been axed and permission for felling one more tree is being sought. The bench said no more trees will be cut after this.

The Court said that there will also be no felling of trees on Lakshmana Rao Park boulevard, until further orders.

The BMRCL’s plea to allow them prune the trees was also not considered by the bench.

Relief for residents: Hasiru Usiru

The HC stay on the tree-felling along Lalbagh-R V Road has come as a relief for thousands of Bangaloreans, and all those who have cherished the sylvan spaces of Lalbagh and Lakshman Rao boulevard, green NGO, Hasiru Usiru said on Thursday.

To convince the CM that the Metro project can be built in a long-lasting manner without destroying Lalbagh and Lakshman Rao Parks, the NGO has now decided to mobilise a large gathering on Saturday.

BMRCL PRO Yaswant Chauhan said that theirs is a court abiding organisation and will follow the instruction as per law.