Ahmedabad/Gandhinagar, May 16 (IANS) Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday reviewed a series of development, environmental and infrastructure initiatives linked to the Gandhinagar Lok Sabha constituency, including a large-scale afforestation campaign under which more than one crore saplings are proposed to be planted during 2026-27.

Chairing a high-level meeting in Ahmedabad, Shah reviewed the ongoing ‘Green Lok Sabha – Gandhinagar Lok Sabha’ campaign and said tree plantation and pond rejuvenation had become a “new identity” of the constituency.

“In the past three years, 1.5 crore trees have been planted in the region. As a result of these continuous efforts, a reduction of 2-3 degrees has been recorded in the average temperature of the Lok Sabha constituency,” he said in a post on X.

Officials informed the meeting that around 1.03 crore saplings would be planted during 2026-27, marking a 64 per cent increase over the nearly 62.85 lakh saplings planted last year.

The campaign aims to expand green cover and provide “clean air, water and a green environment” for future generations.

Shah suggested identifying housing societies where more than 50 trees could be planted and called for “increasing green cover in every part of Ahmedabad through public participation”.

He also directed officials to undertake plantation in road medians and small open spaces, and to intensify plantation in Gujarat Industrial Development Corporation (GIDC) areas to provide an environment-friendly atmosphere for workers and industries.

The plantation drive will include Miyawaki model plantations, dense plantations, linear plantations, boundary plantations, and scattered plantation techniques.

Authorities also plan to green roadside stretches, vacant government plots and urban dump sites.

The Forest Department will undertake the plantation of 6,000 saplings at 18 entry points in Gandhinagar district and seven entry points in Ahmedabad district as part of a “Van Kavach” initiative.

As part of the campaign inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam 2.0’ initiative, free saplings will be distributed to citizens.

Officials said families living in tenements, row houses and bungalows would each receive one sapling to encourage public participation.

Several government departments and civic bodies will participate in the campaign.

Officials said the Deputy Conservator of Forests, Ahmedabad, would undertake plantation of more than 38.79 lakh saplings, while the Gandhinagar forest division would plant more than 12.47 lakh saplings.

Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) is expected to plant around 25 lakh trees, and Gandhinagar Municipal Corporation (GMC) is expected to plant more than 5.42 lakh trees.

Authorities also plan to involve the railways through a memorandum of understanding for plantation work in railway areas, while several organisations have committed support under corporate social responsibility initiatives.

Officials stated during the meeting that the tree plantation undertaken between 2019 and 2025 in the Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency had increased green cover by 11.25 per cent, equivalent to around 2,729 hectares.

Apart from environmental initiatives, Shah reviewed development works linked to Gujarat Urban Development Company (GUDC) and municipalities in the Gandhinagar parliamentary constituency, including Mansa municipality.

Meetings were also held on the progress of public healthcare services, interlinking and rejuvenation of ponds, and the ongoing modernisation of the Sarkhej-Gandhinagar highway to improve healthcare access and transport connectivity in the region.

In another meeting, Shah reviewed the activities of Akhand Anand and Sastu Sahitya Mudranalaya Trust, which has translated spiritual literature and Indian traditions into Gujarati for more than a century.

Discussions were held regarding the publication, printing and distribution of the Bhagavad Gita, Ramayana and the monthly magazine “Akhanda Anand”.

Shah said the trust’s contribution towards spreading Indian culture, values and spirituality was “highly inspirational”.

Deputy Chief Minister Harsh Sanghavi, Chief Secretary Manoj Kumar Das, ministers, office-bearers and senior officials from various departments attended the review meetings.

–IANS

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