12 trees inside CSI Hospital axed without permission

Bengaluru: The Medical Superintendent and Administrator of the Church of South India (CSI) Hospital have been charged by the BBMP Forest Department for allegedly cutting down 12 trees within the hospital premises without proper authorisation. They had initially obtained permission to fell only one tree.

CSI Hospital officials contend that the trees were chopped down and removed by an agency sent by the BBMP Forest Department. However, BBMP officials refute this, asserting that they did not commission any agency for such action.

The complaint names the superintendent, N Satish Kumar, and the administrator, Louis Rao, of the CSI Hospital located on HKP Road in Shivajinagar.

BLG Swamy, Deputy Conservator of Forests, BBMP forest department, told DH, that the hospital authorities had sought permission to cut just one tree and they had granted the permission to cut just one tree.

The order copy accessed by DH shows that CSI Hospital had permission to cut a Malabar neem tree inside the campus after paying a security deposit of Rs 1,000 as it posed a danger to pedestrians and the risk of it falling on the hospital building was huge. 

“We inspected the location and found that a tree inside their compound appeared to be dangerous to the pedestrians. We granted permission to cut the tree after assessing the situation. We had also educated them not to touch other trees when they asked permission to more,” Swamy clarified.

He added, that the officials have been booked under the Forest Act post the mahazar of the place where the trees were found chopped.

The officials from CSI said that a few people had visited the hospital last Sunday and handed them a letter claiming that it was given by BBMP to chop the trees. They asked the officials to pay the labour fee or let them take the wood with them, they were told to take away the wood. 

“We will have a meeting in a day and decide on filing a police complaint,” said the official.

The sources from the forest department disclosed that all the trees axed from the CSI compound were aged more than 50 years.  Vinod Jacob from Namma Bengaluru Foundation said: “Any tree felling should be authorised by the forest department and under their guidance and permission. This is an act which has to be penalised and stringent action should be taken against the perpetrators.”