Lalbagh parking bay: Experts to study impact

Horticulture Minister A Ravindranath on Thursday said a three-member expert committee, consisting of an environmentalist, will be constituted to look into issues related to a proposed parking bay inside Lalbagh Botanical Garden.

“Soon after environmentalists expressed concerns over the impact of the parking bay, we have stopped the work. Depending on the expert committee report, we will take a decision on continuing with the project or dropping it.”

The Horticulture Department’s decision to construct a parking bay inside Lalbagh was severely criticised.

“We will take steps to protect the garden. The idea was to develop a parking bay without harming the garden,” Horticulture Department Principal Secretary M K Shankarlinge Gowda said. “We are against building any permanent structure there.” According to Gowda, the department has spent `10 lakh for the proposed Rs 80-lakh parking bay.

Horticulture Department’s proposal to develop horticulture farms across the state on a PPP model, the minister said.