Delhi tree authority proposes drone-based real-time monitoring of green cover

The authority was also informed that the forest department has approached the Survey of India to collaborate on periodic drone-based surveys for real-time monitoring of plantations.

Published on: Mar 13, 2026, 03:48:09 IST

By Jasjeev Gandhiok

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New Delhi: The Delhi Tree Authority (DTA) has proposed real-time monitoring of the capital’s trees and green cover through drone surveys and has written to the Forest Survey of India to explore the exercise.

The DTA noted that the budget for a tree census was revised by the Forest Research Institute (FRI) from ₹50 lakh to ₹3.9 crore.

In a meeting held in January, the minutes of which were made available online on the forest department’s website recently, the DTA noted that the budget for a tree census was revised by the Forest Research Institute (FRI) from ₹50 lakh to ₹3.9 crore.

The authority has asked the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change to release the first instalment of ₹2.9 crore for phase-1 of the census, according to minutes dated February 17.

“FRI was appointed to conduct the census in compliance with Supreme Court directions. The exercise will be guided by three experts: Ishwar Singh (retd IFS officer), Sunil Limaye (retd IFS officer) and Pradip Krishen (ecological gardener),” the minutes noted.

The revised budget includes ₹2.9 crore for phase I, ₹32.5 lakh for phase II, ₹15 lakh towards contingency and ₹51.4 lakh as institutional charges. Officials said letters were sent last year to the National Compensatory Afforestation Fund Management and Planning Authority (CAMPA) seeking release of the first instalment based on the revised estimate.

“After due deliberation, it was directed that a reminder letter, along with the revised budget,should be forwarded to National CAMPA and MoEF&CC for the fortnightly release of the first instalment, and that the matter listed before the Supreme Court be duly followed up,” the minutes stated.

A tree census records the number of trees in an area along with their species, age, health and condition, helping authorities plan plantation drives, identify gaps in green cover and prioritise conservation measures.

While the Municipal Corporation of Delhi, some resident welfare associations and NGOs have conducted limited surveys in select neighbourhoods, Delhi has never undertaken a comprehensive citywide tree census.

The proposal for such a census was approved by the Tree Authority in 2023, but the exercise is yet to begin.

The authority was also informed that the forest department has approached the Survey of India to collaborate on periodic drone-based surveys for real-time monitoring of plantations and detection of tree-related offences.

“The mechanism for collaboration is underway. It was decided that the matter be expedited,” the minutes read.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Jasjeev Gandhiok
Jasjeev Gandhiok is an Assistant Editor with Hindustan Times, where he covers environment, climate change, the clean energy transition and wildlife at the National Bureau. Gandhiok has over a decade of experience in journalism and is based in Delhi. He has reported extensively on Delhi and the National Capital Region (NCR). This includes the region's air pollution woes, a polluted Yamuna and on urban wildlife still thriving in the region. He joined HT in October 2021. Prior to that, he had five-year stint at The Times of India in Delhi, where he also covered Delhi, with a focus on environment and wildlife. Gandhiok has covered some recent events around the Capital too, ranging from the farmers' protests, the northeast Delhi riots and the CAA-NRC protests, reporting from the ground on all of these. He also travels across the country to report on how environment and climate change impact everyday life, while also writing on endangered species. His reports in 2019 on toxic leachate from Delhi's landfills led to the National Green Tribunal (NGT) taking suo motu cognisance and ultimately asking the state government to start bio-mining to flatten and remove all three landfills in the capital. He also closely tracks the implementation of government policies on climate, renewable energy and environmental protection. His focus remains on impactful, public-interest journalism which explains how environmental decisions affect people's everyday lives.Read More

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