• Former Mayor B.L. Bhyrappa garners public support, opinions at Chamundi foothill
• Railings will result in a fiasco like broken    Raja Marga stone balustrades around Palace

Mysore/Mysuru: The Chamundi foothill witnessed a special event early this morning where former Mayor B.L. Bhyrappa conducted a media briefing against the proposed ropeway project and also the proposal to erect railings on both sides of the steps that lead to the top of the Hill.

Though only a handful of media persons were present, Bhyrappa was soon joined by many morning walkers who called for the conservation of greenery and as-is maintenance of the Chamundi Hill without any further tampering or destruction.

Today being a Sunday, hundreds of regular walkers and weekend walkers had assembled at the foothill and as soon as Bhyrappa began his media address, many joined him. While there were groups listening to what he had to say, there were a couple of other speakers who vented their ire against the destruction of Chamundi Hill and its green spaces.

The public denounced a constant move of political leaders to ruin the Hill in the name of development. Some of the important issues debated here were a creation of buffer space around the Hill with land acquisitions, preserving of the ecology with no further development and how dear is the Chamundi Hill to Mysureans and how its destruction will prove a catastrophe for Mysuru.

15 to 20 deep trenches

Bhyrappa said that for the ropeway project, a minimum of 15 to 20 trenches extending up to 20 feet in depth would have to be dug up. “This will make the soil loose in an area that has already faced multiple landslides. Also, to lay the railings, pits have to be dug and this will cause more destruction. We have seen what has been done to the areas around the Mysore Palace in the name of Raja  Marga,” he said.

“For the Raja Marga development, the Mysuru City Corporation has spent nearly Rs. 35 crore. Now with all the stone balustrades destroyed, Raja Marga has become an eyesore, a blot on the Heritage City,” he said.

The Chamundi Hill is full of stones that are delicate and if poles are erected, the greenery will die and there is a danger of the now partially green Hill turning barren, he reasoned. Digging will lead to destruction. “We cannot recreate nature. Once the Hill is lost, it will be lost forever. All Mysureans must oppose the projects and must not succumb to the machination of politicians,” he said.

Develop foothill with park, parking space

“Instead of developing the Hill per se, the foothill can be developed with more civic amenities like better parking space, a play area, and places to perform rituals and also create more shade for the convenience of the devotees. At present, due to the absence of parking space, hundreds of vehicles are haphazardly parked, especially during weekends,” Bhyrappa said.

To conserve the Hill, the Wadiyars built Lakes like Devikere, Tavarekatte, Karanji Katte Kere, Kukkarahalli Lake, Aparanji Kere, Uthanahalli Kere, Dalvoy Kere and Gobbalikatte Kere. “Unfortunately, all the Lakes have been victimised by human greed. We have to pay a heavy price if the Chamundi Hill is destroyed,” he said.

Several morning walkers like Raghu, who retired from J.K. Tyre, Rajesh, who owns a tiles shop, Somashekar, a builder, M. Paramesh, a KSIC employee and Uma Prakash supported the green cause and called for an effective public campaign against the ropeway and railings project. The Betta Hathhuva Balaga too supported the cause.