Forest minister orders inquiry into tree felling on Hyder Ali Road

Mysuru: Even as a protest against the axing of 40 trees along a stretch of Hyder Ali Road near the SP Office continued on Sunday, forest minister Eshwar B Khandre ordered an inquiry.
According to a directive by Khandre, which was released by the information department, the minister directed PCCF Meenaksh Negi to carry out an inquiry. He asked a PCCF-level officer to conduct the probe and submit a report within seven days. He instructed the investigating officer to look into whether road widening was really necessary in the area and whether tree felling was necessary. He also asked whether procedures were followed while issuing the permission to axe the trees located on both sides of the stretch.
In the note, the minister pointed out a recent Supreme Court statement that cutting down a large number of trees is like killing human beings or worse than that.