Environment ministry pushes five-year, technology-led plantation strategy, links eco-restoration to Green Credit Programme

Union Environment, Forest and Climate Change Minister Bhupender Yadav on Wednesday chaired a high-level review meeting in New Delhi to take stock of plantation and greening plans for the Delhi-NCR region and directed states to prepare detailed district-wise strategies to strengthen ecological security and improve air quality over the long term.

The meeting was attended by senior ministry officials, including the environment secretary, and the Principal Chief Conservators of Forests from Haryana, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and the Government of NCT of Delhi. It focused on a “scientifically planned, technology-enabled and convergence-based” approach to greening, covering both rural and urban areas and drawing on multiple funding and implementation agencies.

Yadav reviewed the progress on identification of plantation sites for 2026-27 and asked NCR states to undertake granular district-wise planning. This will include mapping total forest area, protected areas, zoos (existing and proposed), community and revenue forests, Nagar Vans and Namo Parks, as well as degraded forest land, catchment areas of rivers, water bodies, wetlands and Ramsar sites. States have also been asked to list public spaces under various authorities, including revenue land, panchayats and urban local bodies, classify these by quality of vegetation, and map nurseries in rural and urban areas along with available resources.

The minister stressed that Eco-Clubs in NCR should be identified and engaged in awareness and plantation work, and that the National Museum of Natural History and its regional centres should be involved in the exercise. States agreed to carry out spatial analysis based on the data to identify areas suitable for plantation, types of interventions and the stakeholders to be involved, and to prepare detailed district-wise action plans.

Yadav further asked states to prepare five-year district-level Micro Plans after reviewing existing forest and wildlife management plans and factoring in court directions applicable in NCR. These Micro Plans are expected to spell out annual plantation targets, implementing agencies, scope for community participation, nature of interventions, nurseries and planting material, and funding sources. These include schemes such as the Green India Mission, Nagar Van Yojana, Green Credit Programme (GCP), Compensatory Afforestation Fund, state funds, MGNREGA and river rejuvenation programmes.

States have also been told to identify areas affected by invasive species and integrate eco-restoration of such sites into the Micro Plans. The minister underlined the need to list ongoing litigations related to projects at the district level and assess regulatory constraints that may affect implementation, so that convergence between departments and ministries can be planned in advance.

At the regional level, Yadav directed officials to prepare a consolidated five-year Greening Plan for NCR by integrating the district Micro Plans. The plan is expected to guide coordinated action and support greening targets monitored by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM).

The Forest Survey of India (FSI) has been asked to provide data on degraded forest land and areas affected by invasive species to feed into state planning. Yadav also urged states to list degraded forest parcels on the Green Credit Programme portal to enable participation by individuals and public and private entities in eco-restoration activities aligned with approved Micro Plans.

He said a well-designed, technology-driven district-wise greening strategy is essential for safeguarding NCR’s ecological balance and achieving sustained gains in air quality, adding that the next review meeting will be held soon to assess progress by the states and the Delhi government.