The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh / Vijayawada News : City awaits NRI funds to go green

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Dec 01, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh - Vijayawada

City awaits NRI funds to go green

By Our Staff Reporter

VIJAYAWADA, NOV. 30. The Vijayawada Municipal Corporation (VMC) will write to Non-Resident Indian (NRI) associations seeking help to develop greenery in the city, according to the Municipal Commissioner, V. Usha Rani.

Addressing a press conference here on Tuesday, the Commissioner said the VMV wanted to develop a green canopy by growing trees wherever possible. A letter had been written to the Principal Conservator of Forests to depute an urban forestry expert for developing avenues and canopies in the city and its suburbs, she said.

The Commissioner said that the Municipal Corporation of Hyderabad had a budget of Rs. 60 crores per annum to develop greenery, whereas VMC could spend only Rs. 20 lakhs.

`Capital' gains

By developing greenery, MCH could reduce noise and air pollution tremendously, she said. There were huge stretches of greenery in Hyderabad to absorb noxious gases like carbon dioxide, but the same could not be said of Vijayawada. VMC would take the assistance of M. C. Das, a retired lecturer of Andhra Loyola College, to write to NRIs for donations. Ground was being prepared to obtain permission so that the VMC could accept donations and give donors certificates for Income Tax exemption.

There was a proposal to plant one lakh saplings, but the VMC could plant only 20,000 in the city. Planting of saplings was easy, but maintaining them was difficult, Usha Rani said.

NGOs' help sought

She gave a call to non-governmental organisations (NGOs) to assist the VMC in this regard. Bandar Canal bund was free of encroachments right up to the Skew Bridge, she said and urged NGOs and corporate bodies to develop greenery in these parts.

VMC would permit them to put up small boards, but no lease agreement would be signed, since public land was being "encroached in the name of greenery". The Ambedkar-Raghavaiah Park, V. M. Ranga Park and the Alluri Seetharamaraju Park were being misused by the lessees. They were doing businesses without proper permits and they were not developing greenery either.

`Encroachment' saga

She urged citizens to help the VMC protect public property from being encroached. She narrated how she had a hectic time trying to protect a small piece of VMC land in Seetharampuram. The VMC put up a board a mesh. A few days later, the board disappeared and the mesh was ripped off. "We know who is behind this and one day the same person makes a representation to the municipal corporation saying that he will develop greenery," she said.

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