HC halts cutting

BANGALORE: Karnataka High Court on Friday directed BBMP not to cut any trees on Sankey Tank Road till further orders.The BBMP counsel argued that there are around 69 trees on the road and the BBMP was cutting only 19 trees to widen the road. He added that the BBMP had already cut 10 trees.Upon request of both parties to the suit, the Division Bench visited the spot and later saw the slideshow presentation by the petitioners.At around 5.30 pm, the counsel submitted that the BBMP had cut 17 trees and only two trees, bamboo and jamun, that were marked were yet to be felled.The Division Bench directed the BBMP not to cut trees till further orders.Meenakshi Bharath and five others have filed a petition in the HC, requesting that tree felling for widening the Sankey Tank Road be stopped. The petitioners contended that though the HC had directed the BBMP to consult local bodies and citizens before widening the road in 2009, the BBMP has decided to cut 19 trees without consulting the residents.The BBMP has planned to widen the road in between Cauvery Junction, CNR Rao Junction and Yeshwantpur Junction into a six lane road.There are over 300 trees on that stretch of road and some of them more than 70 years old.