Delhi will soon have 32 of them, says Sheila NEW DELHI: Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit inaugurated a city forest at Chhawla on the banks of the Najafgarh drain in South-West Delhi on Saturday. Over 12,000 saplings will be planted here over the next few weeks. Ms. Dikshit said the greening drive of her government had taken off with the opening of the Chhawla city forest. "The drive will conclude in October. In all, nine city forests in different parts would be set up and 18 lakh saplings would be planted during this greening drive in Delhi.'

Pune, June 26 This year's Sant Tukaram and Sant Dyaneshwar Palkhis will comprise an ecological purpose in addition to their religious fervour. In an initiative conceptualised by the Directorate of Social Forestry, Maharashtra State, Pune, school students who are a part of the Eco Clubs formed under National Green Corps (NGC) scheme will be distributing seeds to the warkaris and even guiding them about their plantation.

The Agri Horticultural Society of Western India, a non-governmental organisation taking care of the Empress Garden has decided to form a committee to protect the greenery in Pune. The committee will be named as - Harit Pune Sanrakshan Samiti, said Suresh Pingle, secretary of the organisation. "It has been observed that prominent politicos, bureaucrats and land mafias are interested in acquiring the green patches in the city. Our committee, comprising of leading personalities in various sectors would see that the greenery remains safe," said Pingle.

Over 1000 local and indigenous plants were planted by entire Kumar Builders family on in the presence of several dignitaries like Mayor Rajalakshmi Bhosale, Municipal Commissioner Praveensinh Pardeshi and Prakash Thosare, director of Social Forestry. They all took an oath for environment protection.

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Several trees cut, pruned without permission, says PMC's Tree Authority; local association denies charges Illegal felling of trees has found its way into the upmarket Boat Club area of the city. The Tree Authority of the Pune Municipal Corporation has issued a show cause notice to the Riverside Estate, an association of plot owners on Boat Club Road

Whether the ruling dispensation listens or not, the advise to the government on Goa's Statehood Day from the historic Maidan is simple

Residents of AN-AM Block of Shalimar Bagh here are waging a war to save their greens that include 80 full-grown trees and a local park that they claim would be destroyed if the Government goes ahead with its plans to construct a multi-storey underground parking lot to accommodate the growing number of vehicles. The residents have also appealed to Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit and senior officials to save their greens.

It will be more greenery for Lalbagh Botanical Gardens as the horticulture department has embarked upon a special tree exchange programme, to add to the parks existing diversity on the lines of animal exchange plans undertaken by zoos of the country. Though the City's lung space is shrinking, the silver lining is that under this programme, the park will get over 3,000 trees from every nook and corner of the world. "We already have about 7,500 trees of 1,854 species. Now another 850 species will arrive,' Dr M Jagadish, Deputy Director, Lalbagh Botanical Gardens told Deccan Herald.

The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Delhi Development Authority, the Delhi Government and the Commonwealth Games Committee on an application for a direction to them to re-locate the sports stadiums to be constructed near Siri Fort auditorium to some other site as it involved cutting of over 1,000 trees. The application wanted them to ensure that any site selected should be such as to cause minimum disruption to the environment, and if such new sites involved felling of trees, it should be done only after obtaining permission from the Supreme Court.