National Green Tribunal sends notice to Karnataka govt, BBMP over violations involving tunnel project in Bengaluru

Notices were issued to the BBMP, Karnataka Environment Impact Assessment Authority, B-SMILE, Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and the project consultants.

Bengaluru: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has issued notices to the Karnataka government and other agencies after admitting an application alleging serious violations in Bengaluru’s proposed tunnel road project.

The plea, filed by Bengaluru Prajna Vedike, Dattatreya Devare and Kathyayini Chamaraj, said the “hastily announced” tunnel was not backed by the Comprehensive Mobility Plan-2020 and lacked technical assessment. They sought to have the project declared unlawful.

In May 2025, the state approved construction of a 16.74-km twin-tube tunnel from Hebbal to Silk Board at an estimated cost of Rs 19,000 crore. The petition described the plan as “politically driven” and alleged it was pushed forward despite two failed expressions of interest, later retrofitted into a feasibility study through “procedural manoeuvring".

The applicants said the detailed project report contained factual errors and omitted key studies, including site-specific geological surveys, hydrological mapping, and flood-risk assessments. They argued that although the alignment passes through ecologically sensitive zones like Lalbagh, Hebbal Valley’s stormwater corridor and near Peenya Industrial Area, no impact assessment was conducted.

“The respondents bypassed the mandatory Environment Impact Assessment (EIA), ignored public consultation, and relied on a technicality that tunnels are not explicitly listed under the EIA notification, 2006, to evade clearance,” the plea stated.

Notices were issued to the BBMP, State Environment Impact Assessment Authority, B-SMILE, Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change, and the project consultants.