The Delhi government on Sunday launched its plantation campaign ‘Jahaan Vikas, Wahaan Hariyali’ in the Babarpur assembly.

Notably, the campaign is being rolled out across all assembly constituencies to highlight the importance of environmental protection alongside development, an official statement said.

The Kejriwal Government aims to plant over 64 lakh saplings this year, with more than 7 lakh 74 thousand to be distributed free of cost, the statement added.

During the campaign, Delhi Environment and Forest Minister Gopal Rai informed residents and RWA members about the measures taken by the government to boost the national capital’s green shed, who actively participated, marking the beginning of a city-wide effort to enhance Delhi’s green cover.

Rai began the plantation campaign in Babarpur by planting a sapling and said that the people of North Ghonda and Ghonda participated enthusiastically in the plantation campaign.

The minister further said, “Due to the efforts taken by the Kejriwal Government, the green cover in Delhi, which was 20 per cent in the year 2013, has increased to 23.06 per cent in the year 2021. Moving forward in this direction, a plantation campaign was started in Babarpur to give impetus to the plantation mega campaign included in the 12 points of the Summer Action Plan,” the AAP leader added.

“Tree plantation campaign is being run every year to increase the green belt of Delhi and reduce pollution in Delhi. Since the second term of the Kejriwal government i.e. in the year 2020, since our government was formed, more than 2 crore trees have been planted till now,” he said.

Minister Rai conveyed that along with the government, Delhiites should also cooperate in the plantation campaign, and added that the government is also providing free medicinal plants to the people of the city that are being distributed free of cost from 14 government nurseries in a bid to promote citizen’s participation to increase national capital’s green cover.

He appealed to the people present on the occasion that to improve the environment of Delhi, everyone should take a pledge to participate in the tree plantation campaign every year to reduce pollution in the city.