Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai today announced that a high-level meeting will be held on April 12 at the Delhi Secretariat to discuss this year’s mega plantation drive and to determine the aim for next year’s plantations.
According to the Delhi Environment Minister, the government set a goal of planting 33 lakh saplings in the previous year but it exceeded it by planting 35 lakh saplings. The central government had set a goal of planting 28 lakh saplings in 2021-22 for Delhi, but the Delhi government exceeded that goal by planting 35 lakh saplings.
Rai said, “On the 12th of April, a meeting with all concerned departments has been called for the Mega Plantation Drive at the Delhi Secretariat. Forest Department, DDA, MCD, Education Department, DSIIDC, Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, PWD, CPWD, NDMC, NDPL, Delhi Urban Shelter Improvement Board, Environment Department, Delhi Jal Board, Railway, and other related departments, including DTC, will be involved in the meeting of the mega plantation drive.”
The Minister further said, “As a result of the Delhi government’s tireless efforts, Delhi now ranks first among Indian cities in terms of per capita forest cover. As per the Forest Survey of India’s report Green cover of Delhi-NCR is 23.06 percent in the year 2021.
The Delhi government and all concerned agencies have been running a huge plantation drive over the past few years, and as a result, Delhi has surpassed all other cities in terms of per capita forest cover. In addition, the department has decided that, in order to improve the current survival rate of plants, the quality of soil will be assessed, and plantations will be encouraged in that area as needed.”