Delhi forests to be upgraded in eco-friendly manner

The Delhi forest and wildlife department has identified 16 parameters based on which all existing and upcoming forest areas in the city will be upgraded in an environment-friendly manner, officials aware of the project said on Sunday.

The department has already begun revamping the 17 forests in the city, with changes that include the creation of amphitheatres and eco-huts, bio-toilets, solar-powered lighting, and water bodies. Officials said paths within the forest will be laid with murrum, a laterite-based soil.

These forests are also being upgraded on the lines as the ones at Mitraon, Alipur, Garhi Mandu and Jaunapur — four forests identified by environment minister Gopal Rai in 2021 to be developed into “world class city forests”, officials said. A senior forest and wildlife department official, declining to be named, said a tender for the four model city forests is yet to be floated, but work on them will commence immediately after the funds are released.

“For these four city forests, we will float an international tender and for this, funds will have to be earmarked. We are awaiting the allotment of funds, after which a tender will be floated. Meanwhile, small upgradation works at the other existing city forests has already begun, with minor upgrades being made in each forest division,” said the official.

The official also said that the 16 parameters for revamping the forests were identified after looking at best practices abroad.

Delhi’s 17 forests are spread over an area of 528.94 acre. A second forest official said while these forests are envisaged as green recreational zones in the heart of the city, provisions of the Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980, the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, Delhi Preservation of Trees Act, 1994, and the Indian Forest Act, 1927 will still apply here, meaning that no food materials can be bought or sold here, no electric lights can be installed (barring those being run by solar energy), and no music can be played. “All activities permitted will be from sunrise until sunset. We are in the process of deciding a carrying capacity for these city forests, meaning people beyond the carrying capacity will not be allowed inside. This will ensure the wildlife inside is not disturbed,” the official said.

Faiyaz Khudsar, scientist in-charge of Delhi Development Authority’s Biodiversity Programme, said city forests can offer ecological services by trapping dust, reducing particulate matter pollution, and carry out carbon sequestration – trap and remove excess carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. However, in order to maximise their potential, it is important to plant native species suited to the area, he said.

“Before we carry out afforestation, we must consider the ecological history of the place and only plant native trees which existed in that particular terrain. When creating or reviving water bodies, we must also look at the natural drainage pattern to see how water can be fed into the water body each time it rains,” he said.