Greater Noida: Minister promises to protect Surajpur wetland

The Gautam Budh Nagar forest department on Friday observed World Wetlands Day at the Surajpur wetland and bird sanctuary. State excise minister Jai Pratap Singh, who is in charge of Gautam Budh Nagar district, took part in the event and said that the government will take necessary steps to protect the wetlands, which play a pivotal role in groundwater recharge.

World Wetlands Day is celebrated on February 2 of every year to spread awareness about the need to protect wetlands.

The forest department will set up a drinking water facility for visitors at the bird sanctuary located in Greater Noida’s Surajpur area. The Surajpur wetland is spread on 60 hectares and the forest area around it spans 308 hectares.

The additional chief executive officer of Greater Noida authority KK Gupta, Gautam Budh Nagar divisional forest officer HV Girish and other officials were also present at the event. School children, through cultural events, appealed to the public to work together to save the wetlands and green zones.

“Wetlands and forest areas work as the lungs of the city. Our government will take necessary steps to protect the wetlands and forest areas,” the excise minister, who is on a three-day visit to Noida, said.

The forest department said that it will develop facilities for visitors at the Surajpur wetland and bird sanctuary.

“We have decided to develop some facilities so that the visitors or families who come to the sanctuary can sit inside the green area. Apart from this, we also want to provide drinking water facility, which is not available at the sanctuary. We will also decide how many persons can be allowed to visit the sanctuary per day,” Girish said.

The forest department is also planning to charge a fee from the visitors.

“The minister has promised all possible help to protect the sanctuary. We want to decide a fee so that we can control the number of visitors. If we do not limit the number of visitors, it will be difficult to protect the wetland and the sanctuary. We will make a proposal on the fee and send it to the government for approval,” Girish said.

After attending the event, the minister also reviewed developmental projects in Noida and Greater Noida. He directed officials to finish projects as per the stipulated deadline of each project.