Palike moots tree parks in five forest zones

Palike moots tree parks in five forest zones
Bangalore: Nov 16, DH News Service

The Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP), which has been caught in the eye of a storm over tree felling and road widening in Bangalore, has now found a novel way to circumvent the whirlwind.

The Palike has now mooted tree parks in its five forest zones, to provide more oxygen cover for the City.

According to this plan, the BBMP will identify a minimum of one acre of land for their project on the outskirts of the City to protect the fast vanishing green cover in Bangalore.

“While the plan is in the preliminary stage, we are looking at the project to supplement our roadside planting to substitute the loss of green cover in the City,” informed a BBMP official.
The Palike believes the Tree Parks in the City will help them curtail the spiralling budget meant for maintenance and security of the saplings planted in the middle of roads across the City.

Traffic congestion

“We will be initiating the Tree Parks in areas where there is congestion of traffic to increase the lung space. Besides this, we will be fencing them with herbal or medicinal saplings for future use,” informed the official.

BBMP is currently in the process of identifying the land and intends to finalise it within the next week. It also intends to involve the local public in identifying the areas and in the future maintenance of these parks.

“It will be a continuous process and will involve the public right from the beginning to the final stage of creating the park,” said the official.

On whether the tree parks will interfere in the current developmental projects and the future plans for Bangalore City, the BBMP officials have said that none of it will affect the project.

Palike officials were of the view that the Horticulture Department plants needed longer gestation period and maintenance.

However, they declined to comment on the quality of these saplings.