East Bengaluru all set to welcome its first tree park

The Kadugodi tree park is one among the three tree parks set to open in Bengaluru this year.

East Bengaluru is set to get its very own tree park next month. The Turahalli project might’ve left people in a sour state but the Government is planning to launch more tree parks across the city.

The tree park near Kadugodi is being readied under the Chief Minister’s “Vision 2022”. Talking to Metrolife, a forest-ranger near Kadugodi said, “A tree park already exists in the region. We are giving final touches to it. We ensured that no trees or vegetation were harmed in the process.”

Tree parks, or mini biological reserves, are a government initiative to curb pollution in the city. The idea was part of Chief Minister B S Yeddiyurappa’s “Mission 2021” plan and has also been included in his “Vision 2022”.

The Forest Department is set to open tree parks in Kadugodi, Machohalli and Turahalli. While a stay has been ordered on the ‘Mega tree park’ project in Turahalli, the Department is working on renovating the already-existing park.

“Many organisations like Bosch and Sumadhura have contributed to the project. Thanks to them, we have set up basic amenities across the park, like dustbins, chairs, toilets, benches, solar lights, drinking water facilities and a parking lot.” said Ravishankar SS, deputy conservator of forests, Bengaluru Urban.

The department has taken all the measures to ensure that the forest remains unharmed said, Ravishankar. “We have made sure no harm is done to the flora and fauna of the area. There is no use of concrete or any other chemical to build the walkways. We have created mud paths in the most natural way possible” he explained.

The Kadugodi forest was gifted by the erstwhile Maharajas of Mysore to the government in 1896. It was later officially notified as forest land.

The original plot of the Kadugodi plantation measures approximately 711 acres, of which only 26 acres will be converted into the tree park, said the Department.