GHMC to plant one crore saplings under the Haritha Haram programme

This year, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) is targeting to plant one crore saplings under the Haritha Haram programme. To this effect, 60 lakh saplings are being raised in the nurseries that are maintained by municipal corporation while the remaining 40 lakh saplings are being raised at private nurseries.

Not confining to planting just saplings, the municipal corporation is also focusing on setting up tree guards to ensure survival of the saplings. During a meeting here on Tuesday, the GHMC Commissioner M Dana Kishore has set a target of arranging one lakh tree guards under corporate social responsibility for the Zonal Commissioners.

To ensure success of the sapling plantation exercise, officials were instructed to rope in colony welfare associations. Tree guards should be set up around saplings planted in colonies and along the



roadsides, he said.

Directions were issued to take up extensive plantation in the 616 open spaces owned by the municipal corporation and transform them into parks. Similarly, plantation should be taken up in the 331 tree parks across GHMC limits, besides graveyards.

Meanwhile, maintenance of children play equipment and open gyms in different parks has been entrusted to urban biodiversity wing. With many complaints being lodged over poor maintenance of play equipment and open gyms, the decision was taken to handover the maintenance to urban biodiversity wing from engineering section.

Instructions were also issued to the urban biodiversity wing officials to appoint agencies for the annual maintenance of the open gyms and children play equipment in the parks, said a press release.