BANGALORE: Flouting the authority of a committee set up by the Chief Minister as well as a hearing on the case that was scheduled in the High Court for Monday, the Bangalore Development Authority on Friday and Saturday went ahead and chopped down over 30 trees near the Water Tank junction in Kormangala.Residents of Koramangala on Sunday staged a protest against the action taken by the BDA and questioned the late night operation which was carried out till 4 am on Sunday morning according to them.“Don’t they have any respect for authority? We spoke to the Chief Minister two times about this.They still went ahead and chopped the trees,” said a senior resident.According to the BDA, the tree felling was necessary for various assorted projects related to the Sirsi Agara signal free corridor which will be built at a cost of Rs 119 crore.However the issue of tree felling was a long standing one between the residents and the BDA since the residents allege that they were not consulted about the project.Chief Minister D V Sadanda Gowda had constituted a committee to look into the issue which was supposed to be headed by Additional Chief Secretary K Jairaj.However Jairaj is due to retire on May 30 and the committee has reportedly not started work yet.However the residents had also filed a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) in the High Court, which was due for hearing on Monday.Residents on Sunday alleged that the BDA authorities had brought police protection with them in order to ensure that their work would not be disturbed.“It is too late to fight now, what is the use of a committee report or a High Court order now that the trees have been chopped,” rued Rishi, a resident. He added that there were reports of further tree felling which has been planned by the BDA on the stretch and that the residents were contemplating on filing a criminal contempt case against the BDA.
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