New Town residents plant saplings to celebrate Puja

For the first time many housing complexes in New Town have taken a unique move to plant tree 

saplings as part of Durga Puja celebrations and to fulfil Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee’s dream of making the area a green city.

Housing complexes where tree saplings have been planted included Aiakal, Rail Bihar, Millennium Tower, Animikha and Sukhobristi.

Debashis Sen, chairman of Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (WBHIDCO), visited some of the housing complexes to inspire the organisers.

During Banmahotsav in July, WBHIDCO had requested housing complexes to plant tree saplings and send their photographs to the authorities.

After one year, the officials will visit the housing complexes and the one that will be able to maintain maximum number of saplings will be rewarded.

This had evoked a good response. More than 40,000 tree saplings were planted during weeklong Bonmahotsav, which was inaugurated by the state Urban Development minister Firhad Hakim on July 14. Tree nurseries have come up along the canal as the land is being rented out for the purpose.

The erstwhile Left Front government which took the initiative to set up the township did not have any scheme to increase the green cover in the area.

New Town looked like a barren desert. After coming to power in 2011, Mamata Banerjee took the initiative to increase green cover in New Town.

Eco Park which she later named Prakriti Tirtha has come up along a huge water body. Several gardens have been set up and the area has become the most important tourist attraction. Eight parks have come up in the area with one for senior citizens.