New Delhi: In a major regional environmental initiative, the Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change has directed all National Capital Region (NCR) States and the Government of NCT of Delhi to undertake an extensive spatial mapping and analysis of forested, public and ecologically sensitive lands to support a coordinated Five-Year Greening Plan for Delhi-NCR.
The decision came at a high-level review meeting chaired by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, who called for a “scientifically informed, technology-enabled and convergence-driven greening strategy” to secure the region’s ecological resilience and improve long-term air quality.
This mapping will be supported by classification of all identified areas based on the quality of vegetation, degree of degradation, ecological sensitivity and the agency responsible for management. The aim, officials said, is to create a centralised, spatially integrated baseline for planning large-scale greening interventions.
Recognising planting capacity as a major bottleneck, Yadav directed States to map , all nurseries in rural and urban areas, specifying their species mix, production capacity, infrastructure status and projected gaps. States have been tasked with assessing the investment needed to upgrade nursery networks to meet future plantation targets.
The Minister also urged the active involvement of the National Museum of Natural History and its regional centres in expanding environmental education and participating in plantation efforts. A special emphasis was laid on identifying and mapping Eco-Clubs across NCR, which will be mobilised for awareness campaigns, plantation drives and long-term maintenance of green assets.
Each district will prepare a comprehensive “Micro Plan” that consolidates these findings. The Micro Plans will also outline mechanisms for interdepartmental convergence, detailing which ministries, agencies and authorities need to coordinate on land availability, resources, permissions and monitoring.
States were additionally asked to compile a list of all ongoing environment and land-related litigations that could affect plantation projects, so that regulatory constraints can be examined and addressed early.
Yadav directed ministry officials to integrate the district-level Micro Plans into a cohesive Five-Year Greening Plan for NCR, enabling synchronised greening efforts across Delhi, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan.
This plan is expected to play a key role in supporting the ongoing plantation targets monitored by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM), which considers green cover expansion a critical element of regional air-quality improvement.
Officials noted that coordinated action is essential given Delhi-NCR’s unique challenges: high population density, fragmented urban landscapes, and severe air-pollution pressures. The consolidated greening plan will allow for resource pooling, better land prioritisation, and uniform monitoring protocol across States.
This data will be incorporated into State and district planning processes. He further directed all NCR States to upload potential eco-restoration sites on the Green Credit Programme (GCP) portal to facilitate participation by citizens, companies and civil-society organisations.
This will allow restoration activities to generate tradable Green Credits, creating a new financial push for landscape restoration.
Calling the initiative “a crucial step toward restoring the ecological balance of the NCR”, Mr Yadav said that a technology-backed, data-driven greening strategy will help enhance biodiversity, stabilise ecosystems, and contribute significantly to sustained air-quality improvements.
He emphasised that all concerned agencies must work in tandem, and announced that a follow-up meeting will be held soon to review the progress made by the States and the Delhi government.
As the NCR grapples with chronic pollution and shrinking green spaces, the proposed Five-Year Greening Plan is poised to become one of the region’s most comprehensive ecological interventions.
