‘Gift’ the city with green cover through Corporation’s novel initiative

Explaining the eco-friendly initiative, a senior official said that any resident can come forward to plant a sapling on his or her birthday, wedding anniversary, etc., and have their names etched on it on a 2x2 signboard placed on the iron grill around the tree. 

The drive is a win-win situation because the civic body wants to increase the tree cover area to meet the norms. Chennai has an area of 426 sq km and out of this only 9 sq km has tree cover. This translates to a dismal 6.25% out of the mandatory 33.3% of green cover. 

The Corporation official said the city has enough space to plant saplings. “River banks, playgrounds, schools and colleges, burial grounds, hospitals and government office complexes will be the prime areas for this drive. Not only private organisations, even individuals too can plant a sapling on their birthdays or other occasions or in remembrance of a deceased loved one. The participants will be free to choose the location. We will do a spot study of the area and give approval following which the sapling can be planted. People can have their name upto 75 per cent of the board space and the rest will be used by the urban body. The only condition is that they need to maintain it for three years.”

K Neelamurali, Managing Director of CDP Sign Solutions, said they have been planting saplings under this initiative. “We are planning to plant more on arterial roads, to provide shade,” he said. The Corporation official added, “Companies can also advertise on the signboards, after getting the Corporation’s nod.” 

Residents, too, are welcoming this move. “I am all for it. For anyone wanting to do their bit to preserve the city’s green cover, this is a great option,” said Vimala Krishnan, a resident of T Nagar. 

Lauding this initiative, Sultan Ahmed Ismail, Founder of Ecoscience Research Foundation, wondered, “How will a layman know the procedure for this? Who should be contacted for permission? While the idea is good, a better option will be to create a tree park from where people pick up saplings to plant in their vicinity.”