The Sampadak Express News Desk
The Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) has received more than 1,500 objections to the proposed felling of 1,128 trees for the Hebbal Short Tunnel project in Bengaluru, while the National Green Tribunal (NGT) has restrained the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA) from cutting any trees until the next hearing on December 15 in a case challenging the clearance.
The volume of public feedback and the interim halt on tree felling were reported by The Hindu, which cited GBA officials and the NGT order. The GBA had invited objections on September 20 with a 10-day window, but did not initially upload the list of tree species, prompting activists to seek an extension. According to GBA sources, more than 700 objections were filed during the first window, with the remaining submissions received before the final deadline.
A GBA officer told The Hindu that the central concerns raised by citizens revolve around species diversity and the overall number of trees proposed to be removed. Many objections include detailed lists of species to underline biodiversity, while others focus on specific issues such as the local microclimate and the consequences of large-scale tree loss on temperature and air quality.
Additional submissions question the size and maturity of particular trees based on independent measurements by objectors. Respondents have also flagged possible impacts on fauna, hydrological risks given the project’s proximity to Hebbal Lake, and the threat of the area becoming a heat island because it functions as a key urban lung space.
The GBA officer said the authority is filtering and grouping the submissions by theme and will forward all objections to the statutory tree expert committee and to the implementing agency, the BDA. The BDA is expected to review the objections and provide its justification for any proposed tree removal. A joint site inspection by members of the tree expert committee and the BDA is planned to examine the proposal on the ground.
In the meantime, the NGT’s stay order bars any tree felling until December 15, the next date of hearing. The officer said further action on the proposal can be taken only after that hearing and in line with the tribunal’s directions.
Amid public concern, BDA Chairperson N.A. Haris recently told The Hindu that only 56 trees would be felled and the remainder would be translocated. The GBA officer, however, clarified that any decision on felling or translocation rests with the tree expert committee, which will evaluate the objections and the site findings.
“Irrespective of whether the trees are translocated or felled, the BDA will have to plant 10 trees for every tree cleared,” the GBA official said.
The authority’s next steps include compiling the objections for the committee’s review and coordinating the joint inspection, ahead of the NGT hearing on December 15.
