Green Highways (Plantation & Maintenance) Policy

News:

• Road transport and Highways minister Nitin Gadkari has given permission for Green Highways Policy, which makes agencies mandatory in planting trees on highways and maintain them too.
• Road ministry official put forward the history of road building by rulers, who preferred planting fruit and shade bearing trees for the benefit of local residents unlike the present practice of planting eucalyptus and Australian babool, neither provide shade nor fruits.
• An official said “Since the players are specialized in building roads, their focus is different. So, as per the guideline road construction and plantation will be delinked. Specialized agencies will get the work for planting and maintaining the trees”.
• The policy specifies that the survival has to be 90% for these trees and there is separate agency to take up this task with panel of expert, it also suggests different types of plants for different soil condition.
• The guideline also specifies the first row will get small to medium sized ornamental trees, planting shrubs or ornamental trees like bougainvillea and kaner to enhance the visual experience of the road corridor in the median, planting herbaceous species as ground cover in the median, special landscapes and embankment slopes and planting shade trees in the last row.

Source: ET