As part of its effort to set up smart and green cities across the country, the NDA Government would soon launch an urban green campaign to bring more and more areas in the cities under green cover. “lands under forest category sans greenery will be brought under forest cover across the country including Tamil Nadu,” Prakash Javadekar, Union Minister for Environment and Forests said here on Saturday.
Speaking to journalists after addressing a meeting of senior officials of the Tamil Nadu Forest Department, Javadekar said vast stretches of lands categorised as forest lands and are lying unused would be brought under the urban green campaign initiative by planting trees. “We will ensure that such lands are taken care of against encroachment and will build compound walls to safeguard such lands,” said the Minister.
He said such green spots in all cities would have rain water harvesting system. “A city like Chennai which is facing severe water scarcity can benefit from this urban green initiative,” he said. Individuals and corporates can join hands with the government in the drive to plant trees. “We will see to it that such trees are protected from all kinds of attacks,” he said. The Minister said Rs38,000 crore would be distributed to States as part of the Green City initiative.
The Minister made it clear that only accredited agencies will be allowed to do Environment Impact Assessment, a pre requirement for any major projects. He said the government would see to it that the number of accredited agencies for environment impact assessment was increased. The Rs1,500 crore Indian Neutrino Observatory, to be set up at Theni in Southern Tamil Nadu by the Department of Atomic Energy has come under a cloud following the EIA done by Salim Ali Centre for Ornithology and Natural History. Though the INO was given a green signal by the Salim Ali Centre , the opponents of the project had pointed out that the centre does not have recognition of agencies like uality Council of India and the EIA should be done only by an accredited agency.
Javadekar refused to go into the controversy regarding the INO and said that his ministry would soon issue a clarification about who should do EIA. “The Ministry will consider the EIA done only by accredited agencies,” he said.