Green Helpline to guide citizens in enhancing greenery in city

Green Helpline to guide citizens in enhancing greenery in city

Staff Reporter

Forest Department to launch special drive from July 5 to August 15


Bangalore: Do you want to plant a sapling in front of your house, but are in a bind over which species to choose?

Just call 42067027, and the Forest Department officials will guide you and also provide the saplings at a nominal cost.

To help like-minded citizens enhance greenery in the city, the Department of Forests has launched a Green Helpline.

The helpline, to be manned by senior officials during working hours, will guide citizens in choosing the species and also inform them about their availability, Chief Conservator of Forests Shivanand Murthy said here on Friday.

Addressing presspersons, Mr. Murthy said the department would start a special tree-planting drive from July 5 to August 15.

“We receive more than 30 to 40 calls every day seeking guidance on tree-planting and information on the availability of saplings. The helpline will address the needs of all such persons. If required (in cases of bulk orders), our officials will even visit the spot and assist people in assessing their planting requirements,” Mr. Murthy said.

He appealed to resident welfare associations and other social groups to make use of the opportunity. The department would sell two lakh saplings of various varieties during the drive. If required more would be procured, he said.

“We will also arrange for transportation of bulk orders. The buyers can pay the transport operator on receipt of the order,” he said.

For the convenience of citizens, the department would also sell saplings through two mobile vans.

These vans would stop at the designated 31 locations all over the city for half a day. People could make payment and carry the saplings, he said.

The existing scheme of granting “tree pattas” to persons who adopt trees in front of their houses would continue, and people could also become tree wardens, if interested, Deputy Conservator of Forests Raj Kumar Srivastav said.
Sandal helpline

He said the department would soon launch a sandal helpline for the benefit of people who want to dispose of matured sandalwood from their trees.

All efforts would be made to popularise the helplines and ensure that the city’s image of “garden city” was retained, he added.

Some of the species that would be sold are: Tabebuia rosea, Tabebuia avellanedae, mahogany, eucalyptus, honge, silver oak, cane, bamboo, hibiscus, sampige, teak and neem.