Make plantation drive a public movement in Gautam Budh Nagar: DM
Chairing a comprehensive review meeting of the district's environment, plantation, Ganga, and wetland committees, the DM directed all departments to adopt a mission-mode approach rather than viewing the campaign as a routine task.
'All departments must coordinate closely, finalise plantation sites, and start pit digging as per their targets. Public participation is crucial — this campaign must transcend paperwork and evolve into a true mass movement,' the DM said
He stressed on the need to increase awareness and involvement in rural areas by forming plantation committees in villages. SDMs, in coordination with forest officials, have been tasked with facilitating this process.
'The involvement of schools, RWAs, industrial units, and NGOs must be ensured to build a collective sense of environmental responsibility,' DM Verma said also instructed district inspector of schools (DIOS) Dharamveer Singh to involve students in the plantation drive to offer hands-on environmental education.
'They should learn about the environment not just through books, but through direct action,' he added.
As part of the preparations, SDMs have been asked to identify sites along the Hindon river and around local ponds for afforestation activities. Officials also said that the campaign will cover floodplain zones where hoardings will be erected prohibiting construction activities.
Expressing concern over rising air pollution due to uncovered transport of construction material, the DM ordered the formation of joint enforcement teams across departments to act against violators and said: 'Strict action must be taken against open waste burning, and the Pollution Control Board must ensure adherence to NGT guidelines in all urban areas,' he said.
Reviewing the progress of the wetland committee, the DM instructed officials to include encroached ponds under mitigation plans and conduct site inspections. He also emphasized the importance of reviving degraded wetlands across the district.
Divisional forest officer (DFO) Pramod Kumar Srivastava stressed the need for timely execution. 'All departments must submit their plantation site details and pit digging status to the forest department in the prescribed format without delay. Timely groundwork is essential for the success of the monsoon plantation drive,' he said.
The plantation campaign is expected to begin with the onset of the monsoon season in July, officials said.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Time of India
a day ago
- Time of India
NGT calls for regular cleaning, monitoring of Sidhwan Canal banks
Ludhiana: The National Green Tribunal (NGT) has firmly directed authorities concerned to ensure regular cleaning and monitoring of Sidhwan Canal banks. Disposing of a petition filed against solid waste dumping and pollution in the canal, the Tribunal emphasised that no garbage should be allowed to accumulate along the banks or be thrown into the water body. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Authorities have been instructed to carry out cleaning operations at regular intervals and to frame a standard operating procedure (SOP) within three months to ensure compliance. In its order, the NGT noted that although cleaning efforts were undertaken during pendency of the case—prompted by previous Tribunal directives—these actions were not sufficient. The material submitted by petitioners stressed the need for continuous monitoring and sustained action to prevent recurring pollution and encroachments. In its previous submissions, the MC claimed to have removed solid waste from the canal banks and taken steps to prevent future dumping. These included the installation of chain fencing along canal banks, awareness campaigns discouraging people from dumping puja offerings, and issuing challans to repeat offenders. The MC also stated that it had removed all secondary dumpsites and replaced them with compactors at transfer stations. A compactor site is currently under construction at the canal location, following approvals from the Punjab State Mandi Board. Additionally, the MC claimed to have developed a green belt along the canal after clearing encroachments, aiming to improve the ecological health and aesthetics of the area. The Tribunal has now mandated regular inspections to ensure that these measures do not just remain one-time efforts. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now The petition was jointly filed by Kuldeep Khaira, Dr Amandeep Bains, Kapil Arora, and Vikas Arora. Respondents in the case include the state government, deputy commissioner, Punjab Pollution Control Board (PPCB), irrigation department, Municipal Corporation, and PUDA. The NGT directives NGT disposes of pollution petition but issues fresh directions for regular cleaning and monitoring of Sidhwan Canal banks Authorities must ensure no garbage is dumped into the canal or along its banks A Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) must be framed within three months to ensure compliance Tribunal noted that past clean-up efforts were insufficient and emphasised the need for continuous action Municipal Corporation claimed steps like fencing, awareness drives, removal of dump sites, and construction of a compactor site had beeb taken MSID:: 123302140 413 |
Hans India
2 days ago
- Hans India
Celebrate Vinayaka Chavithi in eco-friendly manner
Nandyal: Nandyal District Collector G Rajakumari has appealed to the public to celebrate Vinayaka Chavithi in an eco-friendly manner by worshipping clay Ganesha idols instead of those made with harmful chemicals. On Wednesday, at her chamber in the Collectorate, she unveiled a poster promoting the slogan 'Worship Clay Ganesha, Protect the Environment' at a programme organised by the Pollution Control Board. Speaking on the occasion, the Collector urged people to celebrate the festival on August 27 with joy and without causing environmental damage. She cautioned against the use of Plaster of Paris (PoP) idols, which contain hazardous substances like gypsum, sulphur, magnesium and lead. These chemicals do not easily dissolve in water and cause long-term harm to humans, plants and animals. Polluted water from these idols can lead to respiratory ailments, eye problems and even fatalities. The Collector emphasised that replacing chemical-based idols with clay ones is essential to safeguard the environment. She stressed that the responsibility lies with every citizen to ensure that traditions are upheld without compromising ecological well-being. In view of the festival, the Pollution Control Board will distribute 2,000 free clay Ganesha idols at the Nandyal Collectorate on August 25, as part of an awareness programme. Pollution Control Board Executive Engineer Kishore Reddy, Assistant Executive Engineer Ramakrishna, and staff members were present at the event.
Time of India
3 days ago
- Time of India
Scuffle as villagers stall dumping of waste, GMC files FIR
Ghaziabad: Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation has lodged an FIR against Masuri villagers for obstructing waste dumping at its Dabarsi material recovery plant, a designated site for 500MT of city waste. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Locals, citing unscientific disposal and health hazards, blocked GMC vehicles, trigerring a scuffle. Officials say the blockade worsens waste management, which is already strained by NGT fines and the stalled Galand waste-to-energy plant. The FIR was registered against eight named persons and an unknown person under sections 121(1) (voluntarily causing hurt or grievous hurt to a public servant to deter them from performing their duty), 132 (using criminal force against a public servant), 351(3) (criminal intimidation), and 191(2) (rioting) of BNS. Wasit Pradhan, a local, told TOI, "We have been opposing the dumping ground, which they conveniently call a waste processing plant, for many months, and on Monday, villagers staged a sit-in protest near the dumping ground. This irked the GMC, who went on to lodge an FIR against poor villagers." He added GMC officials have filed FIRs against him on two occasions in the past two and a months when he opposed the dumping of waste. The waste processing plant was set up in an area of around 16,000 sqm on land leased out by a farmer. There are eight villages with a combined population of about 1.5 lakh in the vicinity of the plant, and villagers allege that due to unscientific disposal of waste, it is posing a health hazard. "Every day, about 200 to 250 vehicles dump about 800 MT of waste at this so-called plant. Apart from the health hazard, the roads are also being damaged by heavy vehicles, and it has become difficult for villagers to even pass through the stretch as all eight villages are within a range of 300m to 500m from the plant," said Pradhan. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now Meanwhile, a GMC official said, "It is not a dumping ground but a waste processing plant, which has been legally leased out since Dec 2024. Over the past few months, we have been facing opposition from the locals who were even threatening our employees, so we were forced to lodge an FIR against a few people who have been instigating villagers against GMC." The city generates about 1,400 MT of civic waste daily. When asked whether the disposal of the city's civic waste was affected because of opposition, the official said, "So far, things are under control, but if opposition grows, it will affect our work."
