B’luru’s green cover shrinks: 1,222 trees uprooted in 5 months

 Bengaluru: Onceknown as the “Garden City,” Bengaluru is fast losing its green identity. In the past five months alone, 1,222 trees have been uprooted across the city, while 2,585 branches and limbs have fallen, according to data from the Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA). Experts say the increasing loss of trees has already led to a sharp rise in dust particles and declining air quality.

Fifty years ago, Bengaluru’s green cover accounted for nearly 68.2 percent of its land area. Today, it has dropped drastically to just about 3 percent. While rampant urbanization, unplanned development, and excessive concretisation are often blamed, civic negligence has only worsened the situation.

Despite spending crores every year on road and footpath upgrades, the GBA’s forest wing has failed to ensure the protection of existing trees. Many are suffocating due to concrete and paver blocks placed tightly around their bases, cutting off access to water and air — eventually leading to their premature death.

Environmental expert A.N. Yellappa Reddy expressed concern, saying, “Encasing tree roots in concrete blocks is like choking them. If this continues unchecked, Bengaluru’s environmental future is in grave danger.”

Officials admit the forest department is understaffed, with only about 20 officers and workers responsible for maintaining trees across the entire city. This lack of manpower has severely limited regular inspections and preventive maintenance.

Dust particles now contribute to over 51 percent of air pollution in Bengaluru, and experts attribute this directly to the falling tree numbers. Ideally, there should be at least seven trees per person, but the city’s 14 million residents share barely 7.5 million trees — roughly half of what’s needed.

If urgent steps aren’t taken to protect the remaining trees and restore green spaces, environmentalists warn that Bengaluru could soon face the same air quality crisis that plagues cities like Delhi.