Bengaluru’s proposed 2.3-km Hebbal tunnel road could require the removal of 1,128 trees, according to a public notice issued by the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) on behalf of the Bangalore Development Authority (BDA). The GBA has invited objections and suggestions from the public on the proposal.
The trees are located within the proposed project area for underground twin tunnels. The planned facility will be a three-lane, bi-directional underpass intended to connect Hebbal Junction with the University of Agricultural Sciences staff quarters through the campus of the Karnataka Veterinary, Animal and Fisheries Sciences University.
The scale of the proposed tree removal is significant in relation to the project’s relatively short length. The tunnel is being taken up as part of a plan to decongest Airport Road, a major traffic corridor in north Bengaluru. The public notice was issued by the GBA Tree Officer and Deputy Conservator of Forests, who identified the trees as falling within the area required for construction.
The project also involves land in the Hebbal Lake area. The Bengaluru North City Corporation had earlier agreed to provide about 3.5 acres for the proposal. The location places the road project within a wider urban landscape involving transport movement, institutional land and a lake precinct.
The tunnel proposal is already being challenged before the High Court of Karnataka on multiple grounds. The latest public objection process gives residents and other stakeholders a formal channel to respond to the proposed removal of the trees and the project’s use of land near the lake.
The authority’s notice does not, in the material available, specify the final decision on tree removal, a construction start date or the outcome of the court proceedings. The next immediate step is the submission and consideration of objections and suggestions invited by the GBA.
