1,320 trees may be axed for Seethanadi-Brahmavara road devpt

Udupi: As many as 1,320 trees are likely to be axed for the development of the Seethanadi-Brahmavar road. A public hearing will be held in this regard, at the Hebri range forest office, at 3 pm on September 29.
An official said that for the development of the road in Brahmavar taluk, the forest department has enumerated 579 trees in Cherkadi gram panchayat, and 741 trees in Karje panchayat. The felling of these trees is for the development of a 5.5km stretch.
A PWD official said, “Under the State Highway Development Project, a 7.5km, four-lane road was developed from Bramhavar to Sharada school in Cherkady, in 2020-21. Now a 5.5km stretch will be developed into a four-lane road up to Kelakarje, at an estimated cost of Rs 22.5 crore. The project is likely to be completed in a year’s time, and the work, such as jungle clearing and utility shifting, will be undertaken.
Kundapur DCF Ashish Reddy said that the enumeration of trees has been undertaken for the road development. “We will consider the public opinion, and a further decision will be taken,’’ he said.
Meanwhile, greens are opposing the project, stating that at a time when the state is witness to climate change and natural disasters, the axing of trees must be avoided. National Environment Care Federation (NECF) general secretary Shashidhar Shetty said, “As environmentalists, we will surely oppose the project, but at the same time, we are noticing that no efforts are being made to protect the trees. There is no intention to save trees. Why isn’t the forest department rejecting the proposal outright? Why are they not calling for a spot inspection with the environmentalists? Has the vehicle density on the stretch been studied?” he questioned.
Further, he said that trees are unnecessarily being marked for chopping. “We suspect a timber mafia to be behind it. The forest department has been maintaining that for every kilometre, the PWD will pay Rs 3 lakh compensation, but will this compensate for the diminishing green cover?” he questioned.
Greens also said that the forest department often maintains that for every tree chopped, at least 10 trees will be planted. “At that rate, by now we should have dense green forests everywhere. Already more than 1,000 trees were axed for the development of a 7.5km stretch,” an activist said.