NEW DELHI: The Delhi government as the priority plan to combat the air pollution decided to extend the city forest. The government has planned a detailed SOP to work on this. The Delhi government's forest department proposed developing 11 city forests in the national Capital in the financial year 2019-20. Officials of the department made the proposal during a meeting with Delhi's Environment and Forest Minister Imran Hussain, who directed them to develop six of these forests in the monsoon season itself and to submit a detailed action plan in this regard.
Principal chief conservator of forest, conservator of forest and deputy conservators of forests of various divisions attended the meeting. The minister also directed the officials to submit a proposal for a mega tree plantation drive, to be organised in the last week of July in association with various greening agencies. The Delhi government had earlier said it has set a target of planting more than 23 lakh trees and shrubs in the financial year 2019-20. The number is around 10 lakh lower than last year's target.
In the first phase, two city forests established in the trans-Yamuna area–Shastri Park (near colony) and Garhi Mandu –are likely to be thrown open in the third week of July. The other forests will come up at Shastri Park( near Metro station) in east Delhi, ITO Chungi, Aya Nagar in south Delhi and at Mitraon in west Delhi and are expected to be ready between August and September. A part of the green budget, announced by the city government last year, the forests had to be ready by March 2019. Hussain reviewed the project on Tuesday where he asked the forest department to ensure completion of at least six forests during this monsoon season.