Hundreds of Bengalureans on Sunday gathered at Cubbon Park against the Karnataka government's decision to allow a 10-storey building as an annexe to the high court within the park premises. The Department of Public Works (PWD) recently revived an earlier project to build an annexe to the high court in Cubbon Park.
The Karnataka government’s plan to build the HC annexe in the middle of Bengaluru lung space—Cabbon Park—is drawing stiff opposition from the public and the BJP as well.
Opposing the government’s plan, S. Umesh Kumar, the president of the Cubbon Park Walkers’ Association, said the building would take up park space and would invite a huge amount of traffic, which has ‘already messed with the city’, Deccan Herald reported.
"Cubbon Park is a public space, which cannot be taken away no matter who comes to power," the English daily quoted Kumar as saying. " Today, we raise our voices against this encroachment. If this continues, we will unite as a force to protect our park," he said.
Urging the state government to abandon the proposal, Kumar said the proposal to construct a 10-storey annexe had been on hold for the last five years due to the concerns and opposition raised by activists and environmentalists against building within Cubbon Park.
Opposing the state government plan, BJP leader PC Mohan, member of Parliament from Bangalore Central, twitted on X (formerly known as Twitter): "The Congress government’s proposal to erect a 10-storey annexe in Cubbon Park is an assault on our city’s greenery. Bengaluru’s beloved lung space must be safeguarded, not suffocated by concrete monstrosities. Every Bengalurean must vehemently oppose and stop this green genocide.”
Priya Chetty-Rajgopal, co-founder of Heritage Beku said the sprawling 300-acre Cubbon Park has already reduced to almost half its size. If the residents do not stop these encroachments now, what will be left for future generations?
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Executive chairperson of Biocon Ltd, posted on X, “ Why are we destroying our Garden City with such harebrained proposals! Cubbon Park must be untouched. No construction should be permitted.”
In another tweet, she said,” High Courts must be future looking as it will need to transform into online and virtual courts not buildings that destroy the environment! How can our courts rule on environmental issues if they themselves are culprits!!
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