JOIN USIrrigation officials want 6,300+ trees chopped
The forest department, under fire for its plan to cut 6,316 trees near a lake on the outskirts of Bengaluru, says the proposal came from the minor irrigation department.
The lake in question is in Singanayakanahalli, near Doddaballapura, about an hour’s drive from central Bengaluru.
“We are not the ones spearheading the project, the minor irrigation officials want us to cut down these trees. We have given the public time till June 24 to raise objections,” an official told Metrolife.
The 236-acre lake area is being developed under the Hebbal-Nagawara Valley Project, and environmentalists are shocked that a good ecosystem is being destroyed on the pretext of building another.
“The lake and the trees can co-exist. Several ecological water bodies in Karnataka are surrounded by dense forestry,” says Ramprasad V, co-founder, Friends of Lakes.
Singanayanakahalli is a dense green region he has been visiting for years, and the forest is home to peacocks, foxes, wild rabbits and several other species of birds and animals. “The authorities need to consult experts before taking such a decision,” he says.
The Hebbal-Nagawara Valley Project aims to fill 65 tanks in Bengaluru Urban, Rural and Chikkaballapur, and work on 31 tanks has already been completed.
Last February, the Bagaluru lake, meant to act as an impounded reservoir to supply water to 11 other lakes in the region, became the first to be revived under the project. While the treated water is not to be used for drinking and agriculture, farmers are optimistic the project will push up the ground water table, says Mritunjaya Swamy, secretary, department of minor irrigation.
“The project is helping fill up dried up borewells and helping farmers tremendously,” he says.
Narendra Babu, executive engineer, Hebbal-Nagawara Valley Project, says if the trees are not cut down, they will end up rotting in about three months.
“People are opposing the request without knowing the reason. Once we start filling the lake with water, these trees will not survive. They will rot and ruin the lake water eventually. The rotting trees will not only affect the lake but also create a nuisance for the people,” he says.
The trees forming the dense forest were planted by the forest department five years ago as a part of its social forestry initiative.
The objective was to grow quick-growing trees to help the environment and also safeguard the land from encroachment.
“Most of the land is filled with the jaali mara (Prosopis juliflora), which is often cut down by people for use as firewood. We are not asking for all the trees to be cut down.”
“Trees that can be saved can be transplanted beyond the ring bund of the lake where a greener healthier ecosystem can flourish without impacting the lake in any way,” says Babu.
Activists visit site
A team from Namma Bengaluru Foundation (NBF) visited the site on Monday to draft a ground report.
Vijay Nishanth, ‘tree doctor’ and member of the BBMP’s Biodiversity Management Committee, says the team found a fox’s body and peacock’s eggs there, showing how diverse the animal life is on the site.
“The forest department must understand the habitat. It is home to many species and is also a grazing ground to about 1,000 cows,” he says.
Wildlife and birding photographer Vasanth Pathmanathan, who also documents lakes, says the forest is an extension of the lake area.
“Killing the shore could lead to killing the ecology around the lake. In the limited time here, we spotted around 15 types of birds, with the sighting of these being rare even in the densest of jungles.”
“Depleting this space would mean Bengaluru losing these animals from its ecosystem,” he says.
Vinod Jacob, general manager of NBF, says some of the trees are 30 to 40 years old. He also noticed recently planted honge saplings.
“The trees are protecting the catchment area, which has been recharging the groundwater for years,” he says.
He requests the public hearing be postponed by three months, given the pandemic risks now.
To be axed
Acacia: 940
Pongame (Honge mara): 560
Sisu: 550
Jamun: 168
Prosopis Juliflora (Jaali mara): 4,026