Sankey Tank Road widening: No consensus at meet

BANGALORE: There were mixed reactions when the residents and members of environmental organisations in and around Malleswaram met Deputy Mayor S Harish over the Sankey Tank Road widening issue. In the meeting, decongestion of traffic remained a concern for a few while others favoured the preservation of the green cover in the city. Consequently, there was no consensus.Vinay Srinivasa from Hasiru Usiru said the issue should be dealt with more sensitivity as it is related to common people. The trees should not be felled and vendors should not be evicted to make way for affluent city dwellers to drive around in their cars, he felt.Pointing out that there were 11 species of rare ficus on the Sankey Tank Road, environmentalist Suresh Heblikar said that removing them would have adverse effects on the micro-climatic system and damage the Ozone layer. He called for a more ‘efficient’ traffic management system rather than felling trees. However, the BBMP Forest department officials retorted by stating that ficus species could be grafted and also re-planted and that there would be no damage to the environment.Many of the residents demanded that the public be consulted before taking such measures and sought a 30 day postponement to get public response on the mater.Deputy Mayor Harish maintained that the trees were being cut as the traffic there had become unmanageable.The BBMP proposes to widen 1.2 kms of Sankey Tank Road from the existing 11 meters to 27 meters.ATTEMPT TO CUT TREES?Members of various residents’ associations, Malleswaram Swabhimana Initiative, Hasiru Usiru and Citizens Against Corruption led a candlelight vigil against cutting of trees following an alleged attempt by a contractor to cut trees to make way for Sankey Tank Road widening at around 11 pm on Thursday night.Police had accompanied the contractor who had allegedly been given the bid to cut the trees in an auction, about which details are yet unclear. It was only on Wednesday that an attempt to conduct an auction was called off after protests by the people.On Thursday night, police officials had asked the citizens group to write a letter seeking permission to hold the vigil.The issue currently raised by the protesters are: when did the auction take place and why are the authorities doing it clandestinely?