Forest cover declines by 5 sq km in a decade

Bengaluru: As the development works are increasing day by day in the capital, the forest area is also depleting. Many projects in the city including metro, road, buildings, sub-urban rail projects are consuming the forest day by day.

About 5,300 trees have been felled so far for Namma Metro works. Meanwhile, 900 trees have been moved. Suburban train work has already started and 'K-Ride' is also seeking permission to cut trees.

Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) has already got permission to cut down 268 trees for the rail project between Baiyyappanahalli to Chikkabanavara (Corridor 2). Out of which 58 trees are being moved. Besides, about 2,000 trees are expected to be axed for the four corridor stretch. Construction of Peripheral Ring Road, and building towers have caused the destruction of hundreds of trees.

As per the statistical analysis of the last one decade, the forest cover in Bangalore has shrunk by about 5 sq km. This is equivalent to about 700 football fields. Despite this loss, Bangalore, one of the major cities in the southern states, has 89 sq km of forest land. Among the cities with the most forests, Delhi is the first (194 sq km) and Mumbai (111 sq km) is second.

In 2011, Bangalore had about 94 sq. km of forest cover, but by 2021, this amount has decreased to 89 sq. km. Over 7.2 per cent of the total geographical area of the capital is covered by forest, which has come down to 6.8 per cent.

KRDCL cleared 10,000 trees for road widening around Bangalore. Where trees are being cleared for projects, planting should be done in the same area. Experts say that there is not much benefit in planting plants in other places. BBMP plants saplings every year but most of them die due to lack of maintenance. Due to this the green cover of the city is decreasing year by year.

Engineers will submit a report to the Forest Department of the Corporation for the clearance of trees. A committee consisting of forest department and city forest department staff and environmentalists conduct site inspection and identify how many trees can be felled and give permission.

An unobserved rule

There is a rule of thumb that every year before cutting down trees, ten times the amount of saplings should be planted. However, this rule is not being followed in the corporation. BBMP lacks technology and equipment to move large trees.

BBMP cut down 54 huge trees on Bellary Road and the public has raised objections. For the widening of the road, the corporation has started cutting trees near Bellary Road and Palace Grounds. Residents of the area around Palace Ground and Mekhri Circle have objected that the BBMP felled trees overnight to widen the road from Mekhri Circle to Kaveri Junction and Jayamahal to Cantonment Railway Station using the existing land.

In this regard, the locals have expressed outrage on social media and shared video clips. Most of the 54 trees that the BBMP intends to axe are located between Tripura Vasini and Kaveri Theatre. Jackfruit, mango, jamun, tamarind, guava, banyan, teak, bamboo and ashoka trees have been axed by the corporation.