Bengaluru forests cleared for Yash’s upcoming film shoot: Minister orders action

The contentious dispute over a 599-acre forest in Bengaluru's Peenya-Jalahalli area has intensified, with allegations that "hundreds of trees" were felled for a film shoot starring Sandalwood actor Yash, known for his role in KGF.

Forest Minister Eshwar Khandre directed officials to pursue legal action against those responsible for the tree-felling on the site, currently held by the public-sector unit Hindustan Machine Tools (HMT).

The issue came to light after Khandre inspected the land, where an art set for Yash’s upcoming movie Toxic was reportedly constructed by clearing significant vegetation.

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Reportedly, according to forest officials, portions of the land were rented out for the movie shoot, despite the area being designated as "reserved forest" by official gazette notification. HMT, alleged to have leased out portions of the land for non-forest activities, had also allegedly facilitated the clearing of trees for the film’s set-up.

In a letter to the Forest and Environment Department, Khandre emphasized that according to a Supreme Court ruling, forest land remains protected unless officially de-notified. He directed officials to verify the extent of damage through satellite images from the Karnataka State Remote Sensing Applications Centre and determine if any permissions were granted for clearing the trees.

Khandre’s stance to reclaim the Peenya Plantation forest land has met resistance from Union Minister for Heavy Industries, HD Kumaraswamy, who supports HMT’s claim to the land.