Starting June 5, Delhi to plant 33 lakh sapling this year, says Gopal Rai

Delhi will start a massive tree plantation drive from June 5 and will plant at least 33 lakh saplings across the city this year, environment minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday

Delhi will start a massive tree plantation drive from June 5 and will plant at least 33 lakh saplings across the city this year, environment minister Gopal Rai said on Wednesday.

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“On the occasion of World Environment Day, the Delhi government will launch a mega plantation drive and this year, we will plant around 33 lakh saplings of trees and shrubs,” Rai said addressing a digital press conference.

He said in a bid to combat pollution levels, especially PM 10 (particulate matter with diameter less than 10 micrometres) which is essentially dust, the plantation this year will focus on roadsides, where dust is more.

Rai said the central government had set the city-state a target to plant 15 lakh saplings last year, but the Delhi government exceeded that target and ended up planting 32 lakh saplings. This time, the Centre has given Delhi a target of planting 18 lakh saplings.

Linking the recent shortage of medical oxygen in the capital, at the peak of the second wave of Covid-19, to the need for more trees, Rai said, “Delhi saw an oxygen shortage during the Covid pandemic and the government made efforts to bridge the gap and it was successful. Covid cases are decreasing on a daily basis but there is only one way to reach a permanent solution for this problem and that is to plant trees on a large scale.”

Delhi had reeled under a shortage of medical oxygen as Covid cases shot up in April and the first two weeks of May, as the second wave of the pandemic caught the city unprepared.

But medical oxygen, experts said, is made by separating the oxygen from other gases and impurities found in air by repeated steps of compression, filtration and purification. It reaches more than 99.5% purity and is rigorously tested before being okayed for use. More trees will not have an impact on this process, they said.

“Building our immune system is extremely important to combat coronavirus, which is why last year, we had started planting medicinal plants and herbs that increase immunity, such as amla, neem, guava, aloe vera and tulsi,” Rai said.

“Last year, the Delhi government’s nurseries also provided 6.60 lakh plants free to people,” he said.