Rock garden only if public agrees: Katti

Rock garden only if public agrees: Katti

Odeal D'Souza. Bangalore



The proposed rock garden in Lalbagh would come up in the unused land near the Kempe Gowda tower rock. "But the rock garden will be constructed only with public consent," horticulture minister Umesh V Katti declared here on Wednesday.
The proposal to build the rock garden and the musical fountain on the famous Kempe Gowda rock has met with criticism from environmentalists and citizen groups.
Clarifying the plan during a chat with mediapersons, the minister said, "The rock garden will not come up on the famous rock. It will be built in Lalbagh Botanical garden in the unused 20 acre land near the rock."
"The land was lying unutilised for many years. There were many unsuccessful attempts in the past to make use of the land for creative purposes," the minister said.
Insisting that the development projects would be taken up only after taking the public into confidence, Katti said, "I will address the public in Lalbagh Botanical Garden next week. We are taking these steps for them. The progress of the projects is entirely dependent on their consent. They can get back to us and register their views. If they want us to move forward with the project we will do so. Otherwise we will drop the idea."
"The name of the rock garden must have misled the public. They must have thought that it is a garden to be set up on the famous rock. Actually it is a rock garden to be built on the lines of Sentosa Island in Singapore in the unused land beside the Kempe Gowda rock,"said N Jayaram, director of the horticulture department.
The minister promised that no trees would be cut for the project. "We will instead plant trees which can be grown in the land," he said. "The department is also planning to set up a food court next to the Siddapura gate. There will several outlets for the court across Lalbagh. We want to create a place where the visitors can unwind, eat and drink," the minister added.
The horticulture department will join hands with the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) and Bangalore Development Authority for the project which is estimated to be completed at a cost of Rs65 crore.