New Delhi: India’s green cover has increased by 15,000 square kilometres, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said here Monday.
Responding to a question on the issue of felling trees in Mumbai’s Aarey forest, in which the Supreme Court has restrained authorities, Javadekar told the reporters here that he would not like to comment on a sub-judice matter.
“The Supreme Court has given a decision on it, so I will not comment on the matter,” he told a press conference at the ministry.
The environment minister, however, said, “If you cut one tree, you plant and ensure the growth of five trees.”
Asked if afforestation has worked, Prakash Javadekar replied, “In the last four years, the green cover of the country has increased by 15,000 square kilometres. There are only a few countries in the world whose green cover has increased and those include India.”
It must be stated here that the apex court earlier Monday restrained authorities from cutting anymore trees in Aarey Colony in Mumbai to build a Metro car shed.
According to a petition filed in the Supreme Court, it was Mumbai Municipal Corporation’s decision to allow felling of over 2,600 trees in the green zone to set up a metro car shed and 1,500 trees have already been cut by the authorities.
The Union Minister also appealed to the people not to burst fire crackers this Diwali to prevent the increase in air pollution.
“The problem of pollution began in 2005-06 and no one was talking about it until 2014 when Modi government recognised the problem and undertook the challenge to address it,” Javadekar pointed out.
“We are bringing BS-VI compliant vehicles from next year, and 46 teams of the Central Pollution Control Board have been deployed to check the polluting activities in Delhi and NCR today onwards,” Javadekar told reporters.
PTI