Sandalwood tree smuggled out of Lalbagh gardens

A sandalwood tree on the premises of the Lalbagh, which the police and the park authorities claim is 15 years old, was felled by miscreants in the early hours of Thursday. They fled along with the wood.

 Police said that the incident came to light only in the morning when the garden authorities filed a complaint regarding the theft. The tree was located near the main gate in front of the director’s office.

Gunavanta, deputy director, said that there were security guards on the premises, but they were not aware of the theft till morning. 

“There is one guard on rounds, while another sits near the director’s office. When we questioned them, they said they were clueless about the theft,” he said. 

“We had been planning to instal CCTV cameras on the premises earlier. As the tenders have to be called, the procedure will take a while. We will instal them soon,” Gunavanta said. 

There were several attempts earlier also, to smuggle sandalwood trees from the premises. But adequate security has not been provided there. Additional Commissioner of Police (Law and Order) Kamal Panth said, “According to the information I have received, the tree is very old.

 There were guards deployed to protect this tree. But apparently, they were asleep. We will investigate the matter. Stringent security measures should be provided to prevent such incidents.” 

A case had been registered at Siddapura police station.