Short of hands, Delhi government to outsource upkeep of saplings

According to officials, the survival rate of plants sown during the plantation drives taken up in the past has remained low.

The Delhi government has decided to outsource the upkeep of around 135,000 saplings at its two major plantation sites—Garhi Mandu and Jaunapur —where a mega-plantation drive was undertaken by the forest department on September 8 last year. One of the largest plantations drives to be held in recent years, it was organised to beat air pollution by increasing the capital’s green cover.

The Delhi government has decided to outsource the upkeep of around 135,000 saplings at its two major plantation sites—Garhi Mandu and Jaunapur (File Photo)

According to officials, the survival rate of plants sown during the plantation drives taken up in the past has remained low.

The forest department has been facing a manpower crisis for years and while a large workforce is required round the clock to ensure the survival of the plants, it was felt necessary to hand over maintenance of the two sites to a third party, a senior official said.

A report from the comptroller and auditor general of India (CAG) published in 2018 had stated that the plantation of 28.12 lakh trees between 2014 and 2017 could not lead to a commensurate increase in tree and forest cover, thereby raising concerns about the efficacy of Delhi government’s plantation drive. The report also said that the Delhi government does not have a forest policy of its own and, hence, lacks a road map or strategy to improve the forest cover.

The mega plantation drive where the government targeted planting close to 5 lakh saplings across 643 locations in the city was attended by chief minister Arvind Kejriwal.

While 60,000 saplings were planted at Garhi Mandu in northeast Delhi, 75,000 were planted at Jaunapur village in south Delhi last year. Spread across 750 acres along the Yamuna floodplains,

“We have floated a tender. We have invited applications from greening agencies who have handled such sites. The department has to ensure that at least 80% of the total saplings survive and grow as trees,” said the official.

“The saplings need regular monitoring. In case a sapling is spotted not growing well or getting dry within a year’s time, they need to be replaced. These two were the largest sites in terms of area and the number of saplings planted and need greater vigilance,” the official said.

The department has been raising the issue of filling up vacancies, particularly at mid-level posts such as field officers, forest rangers. However, there has been no recruitment on these posts till date, the official added.

Delhi environment minister Imran Hussain, said, “ We want to ensure that all the saplings survive. I have directed the forest department to experiment and find ways for the survival of the saplings. We want good results.”

Barely 12 days after the drive, Hussain had inspected the Garhi Mandu site and had directed the department to ensure proper care of saplings. The minister had observed that in some pockets, the saplings were not adequately watered.

The minister had also asked the department to coordinate with other greening agencies such as Delhi Development Authority (DDA), civic bodies and public works department (PWD), among others, to ensure proper upkeep of saplings for a 100% survival rate.

The Economic Survey of Delhi 2018-19 released recently during the budget session in the assembly had revealed that Delhi’s green cover has increased only by 0.4% over the past two years.

“Post-plantation care is important but often neglected by the government. The plantation sites need a regular and concrete monitoring exercise. Government departments are always short of staff and deal with many other issues, in which case outsourcing the task could be useful and may result in better survival rate,” said Fayaz Khudsar, scientist-in-charge, Yamuna Biodiversity Park.