When children joined hands to make city green

By Our Special Correspondent

HYDERABAD, AUG. 21. The Chief Minister, Mr. N. Chandrababu Naidu, on Tuesday said that the State stood first in improvement of green coverage with its share coming to 965 sq km of the 3,000 sq km in the country.

He was launching the "one day one lakh plantation" programme at the Jeedimetla Industrial Area, the fourth consecutive one in as many years, taken up by the Hyderabad Urban Development Authority around Hyderabad and Secunderabad, as part of the "Green Hyderabad Project". He said the State could top the list owing to the massive sapling plantation programme taken up by the Government and other agencies.

``We will continue the good work by taking up the plantations on a war-footing basis as we strongly believe that it is not just material wealth that the future generations require but a clean and green environment,'' he declared.

It was a grand spectacle with about 15,000 children from different schools in and around the twin cities, NSS and National Green Corps volunteers, NCC cadets, members of self-help groups mobilised for planting 35,000 saplings at the Jeedimetla Industrial Area. It is expected to vastly improve the environment in the vicinity, arguably one of the most polluted industrial areas.

Apart from the 35,000 saplings in Jeedimetla, the one lakh target is to be achieved during the day-long plantation of saplings, 15,000 each at degraded wastelands at Yadgarpally, Kuntloor, Shamirpet reserve forests and RCI- Mamidipally and 5,000 at NPPTI, Rajendranagar.

Mr. Naidu, who also released a brochure on lakes, said a major component of the Rs. 221-crore `Green Hyderabad Project', funded by the Royal Netherlands Government, was the treatment and conservation of lakes in and around city in the next five years. He gave an assurance to the Royal Netherlands Embassy official who attended the function that those affected by the lake beautification project would be rehabilitated.

Praising HUDA for its greening efforts, he asked the authority to raise the green coverage from the present target of 15 per cent of its 1,900 sq km area to 30 per cent in the next two to three years. It would help in improving the environment of the city and its surroundings now hit by industrial and vehicular pollution. He said it was to overcome the problem of vehicular pollution that a Rs. 70-crore Multi Modal Railway Transportation System is planned for the city, improving public transportation and integrating road and railways network.

Women were being made equal partners in all these programmes, including the Rs. 750-crore poverty alleviation programme in 32 Municipalities, he added.

The Home Minister, Mr. T. Devender Goud, said the outskirts of Hyderabad look greener now, owing to the four-year-long relentless efforts of the HUDA, but expressed concern at the industrial pollution in the area and the way lakes had become cesspools. He hoped that the situation would improve, with increasing plantation activity not only by the HUDA but the Ranga Reddy district administration, which is planning to plant 50 lakh saplings.

Ms. Joke Muylwijk, Sector Specialist, Gender and Development of the Royal Netherlands Embassy, was appreciative of the involvement of women and children in the Green Hyderabad Project and the way Hyderabad was looking cleaner and greener.

The Social Welfare Minister, Mrs. K. Pushpaleela, Mr. K. Gyaneshwar, Chairman, Ranga Reddy Zilla Parishad, Mr. T. Krishna Reddy, Chairman of HUDA, attended. Mrs. Lakshmi Parthsarathy Bhaskar, Vice-Chairperson, HUDA, welcomed.

Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Section  : Southern States
Previous : Extension of time for ST dispute settlement
           scheme urged
Next     : Govt. has curbed corruption: Krishna