• No ladder-attached vehicles with MCC as RTO has seized two!
• Both vehicles were older than 35 years

Mysore/Mysuru: The Horticulture Department of the MCC is responsible for maintaining the trees by the side of the road and it has the regular job of pruning old and dangerous branches.

When Star of Mysore inquired about the unpruned branch that caused the death of Reginald Platel, MCC (Horticulture Department) Assistant Executive Engineer Madhukar shockingly responded, “We do not have vehicles equipped (fitted) with ladders for pruning these trees. The officers from the Regional Transport Office (RTO) have seized two such vehicles as they were over 35 years old and were unfit for   operations.”

“Our hands are tied as we lack vehicles and equipment for pruning tree branches. We have issued tenders for private parties to provide vehicles with ladders, but there has been no response from the public,” Madhukar explained.

However, he quickly clarified that they were unaware of the specific tree branch that caused the accident.

Puneeth, Assistant Director of the same Department, stated, “We typically conduct regular pruning of tree branches. However, we were unaware of the hollow branch on the Peepal tree near ‘Chandravana’, the Government Ayurveda Farm. Moreover, we have not received any public complaints regarding this matter.”