Mysore/Mysuru: Indiscriminate tree cutting for development works in Mysuru will no longer be permitted. In a move to safeguard the city’s urban greenery, the Forest Department has constituted a Tree Committee with public participation.

Speaking at the monthly meeting of the Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) in Yadavagiri on Sunday, Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) Ravindra said that under the Karnataka Tree Preservation Act, 1976, the Committee will scrutinise requests for tree felling linked to construction and civic works.

Members will conduct site inspections and submit reports before any decision is taken. Tree Committees, mandated by Courts and the National Green Tribunal (NGT), are meant to ensure that trees are felled only as a last resort and that compensatory afforestation is carried out.

Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) Paramesh will head the Tree Committee. Its members include Environment Engineers from Chamundeshwari Electricity Supply Corporation (CESC), Mysuru City Corporation (MCC), the Horticulture Department and Mysuru Development Authority (MDA), along with environmental activists Bhanu Mohan and Sanjay Dattatri.

Meeting participants noted that ongoing development has resulted in the steady loss of trees. The Committee will meet once a month to review proposals, decide on felling and identify locations for planting saplings.

Speakers stressed the human and ecological cost of losing trees. Retired Botany Professor Dr. S. Shankar Bhat underlined that clean air is as essential as food, urging citizens to plant and nurture trees. Activist Banu Prashanth called for stricter scrutiny, particularly in ecologically sensitive and heritage areas. He pointed to the proposed railway underpass near Kukkarahalli Lake, where more than 70 trees are at risk, as a case that needs careful consideration. Echoing similar concerns, Botany Professor Dr. K.N. Amrutesh said, clean air must be seen as a basic right and called for sustained efforts to protect and expand green cover.

The meeting was attended by Prabha Nandeesh, Dr. Renu Agarwal, Geeta Velumani, S. Shylajesha, Maj. Gen. (retd.) S.G. Vombatkere, MGP President Roy Joseph, Convener V. Dayananda Sagar, Working President S.K. Dinesh & others.

More than 1 lakh trees in Mysuru

Convener of Mysuru Tree Census Sanjay Dattatri noted that while urban works and utility projects often threaten trees, public resistance has been effective. Mysuru’s tree census has counted over 1,00,000 trees, more than Bengaluru’s 91,000, underscoring the city’s stronger civic response to conservation. The final census report is expected soon.