Mysuru: In a petition to Justice Subash B. Adi, Chairman of the National Green Tribunal’s (NGT) State-Level Committee, Mysore Grahakara Parishat (MGP) leaders Bhamy V. Shenoy (Founding Working President) and S. Shobana (Working President) have demanded urgent intervention into the felling of 40 trees on Hyder Ali Road.

The petitioners raised critical questions: Did the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) conduct a cost-benefit analysis before approving the tree removal? Why did the Forest Department — which holds greater responsibility for reforestation and tree preservation — grant sanctions without justification? 

Notably, the Forest Department is often stringent when residents seek permission to remove hazardous trees, sometimes rightfully denying requests.

This incident, the petitioners argue, is not an isolated failure but part of a persistent pattern of negligence by MCC and the Forest Department in safeguarding Mysuru’s green cover. “This time, however, the brazenness has crossed all limits of public tolerance,” they stated.

“The invisible hand behind this senseless destruction remains a mystery,” the petition reads, emphasising that no official in the Forest Department, Horticulture Wing, or MCC — many of whom the petitioners know personally — would independently sanction such an act.

The petitioners urged Justice Adi to conduct an immediate inquiry into the incident, uncover the decision-making chain and deter future violations through procedural scrutiny.

“Even if the culprits evade exposure, your inquiry alone can prevent such environmental murders hereafter,” the petitioners urged, framing the NGT’s role as crucial in upholding ecological justice.