NAGPUR: Trees are gradually vanishing as Nagpur is fast turning into a concrete jungle. This is more starkly visible in old city area that has lost considerable green cover over the years. The situation is so bad that Satranjipura and Gandhibagh zones of NMC have no open space for Nagpur Municipal Corporation's 'Green City Green Nagpur' drive. The NMC plans to launch its 1 lakh sapling plantation project campaign from these two zones.

A BJP corporator from Gandhibagh zone told TOI that they had been given target to plant 2,000 saplings. "But the zone that has such areas as Itwari and Mahal doesn't have space to plant even 100," said the corporator. The corporator pointed out that the area was densely populated commercial hub of the city but also had gained the dubious distinction of the lowest green cover (at just 34,000 trees) in the last tree census.

The first time corporator also pointed out that there was no space available even in Town Hall premises to plant saplings. The schools in this part of the city don't have grounds which could have helped the zone to reach the target.

Similar is the situation in Satranjipura zone. Here too, there are many wards where no place is even in school premises. "The densely populated Mominpura ward comes last with a meagre 195 trees, preceded by Bhankheda with 311 and Timki with hardly 550," said a source from Garden department.

NMC's garden superintendent N B Shrikhande admitted the scanty green cover in old city area. Considering the present situation, he said all 10 zones have been given a target of planting 28,000 saplings. He, however, pointed out that the gap would be made up by zones like Ashi Nagar, Laxmi Nagar, Dharampeth etc where there is place. There are many new residential localities coming up along the outer ring road where trees could be planted, he said.

He said the 'Green City Green Nagpur' drive will mark a step towards restoration of damage done to the nature. "We just want to leave a healthy world for the future generation," he said.