After six-year delay, Bengaluru tree census gathers momentum

The Hindu

7 days ago

The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike's (BBMP) long-delayed tree census project, which has missed several deadlines, is finally expected to gather momentum, following streamlining of the census process and interest from two new contractors to participate in the fresh tendering round.
According to Santosh Kumar, Assistant Conservator of Forests (ACF) with the BBMP Forest Wing, two contractors associated with firms that have conducted tree censuses in Mumbai and Delhi have shown interest in taking over Bengaluru's stalled project.
Only 6.91 lakh trees enumerated
This August will mark six years since the Karnataka High Court directed the BBMP to carry out a tree census across the city, initially giving it a three-year deadline. The BBMP has managed to complete just over 30% of the work.
As per BBMP data accessed by The Hindu, the forest department has enumerated 6,91,222 trees as of July. The census has been completed in the south and eastern parts of the city, covering 80 wards.
According to BBMP officials, Bengaluru is estimated to have around 21 lakh trees. Of these, 2,16,960 trees are located in the south and eastern regions, where work has been completed, according to the project's progress report.
Among the trees already enumerated, the most frequently recorded species are Spathodea, rain trees, mahogany, and gulmohar, said Mr. Kumar.
To wrap up by December
The Deputy Conservator of Forests (DCF) stated that the department expects to wrap up the census by December, or by January at the latest if there are minor delays.
'We will invite tenders within a week, and this time the Sanction Schedule Rate (SSR) has been fixed at ₹22 per tree,' said the DCF. The SSR refers to the amount paid to a contractor for enumerating a single tree. In previous tenders, the SSR was set at ₹18.
When asked about the extended delays, Mr. Kumar explained that Bengaluru was among the first cities in the country to undertake a large-scale tree census. At the time, there was no proper action plan, and the project involved more than just counting trees: it also required accurate species identification, geo-tagging, and recording tree dimensions.
Allegations of bribery
Only two contractors had taken up the BBMP's project initially, and one of them eventually withdrew in March this year, unable to make significant progress. Sources in the BBMP claim he had also accused BBMP officials of demanding bribes.
'We have one contractor still working on the project, but challenges remain. Many field workers struggle with identifying tree species, and their attendance has also been irregular,' Mr. Kumar told The Hindu. Despite this, he remains optimistic that the project will be completed by December.
'The two new contractors have prior experience with tree census work, and we've also streamlined our enumeration process. Once the tender is floated and awarded, the remaining work can be completed swiftly,' he added.
Mr. Kumar further said that the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre has developed a mobile application for enumeration and data storage. The BBMP plans to make this app publicly accessible once the census is complete.
Six-year delay
A.N. Yellappa Reddy, former forest secretary and silviculturist, expressed displeasure over the six-year delay, emphasising its consequences.
'Thousands of trees, some over 100 to 200 years old, have been felled in the name of development, and there's no record of this simply because the survey hasn't been completed,' Mr. Reddy said. 'Had the census been done, we would have had a clear understanding of the destruction caused by these projects.' He added that many of the trees lost were keystone species that could have continued providing ecological benefits for another 500 years.
He further noted that the tree census could have helped identify urban heat islands across the city, enabling timely interventions. In his view, the survey could play a key role in halting the city's changing climatic patterns.