Bhubaneswar, June 11: Bhubaneswar will be developed as a green city. A plantation drive will begin following arrival of monsoon.
The Odisha Forest Development Corporation (OFDC) and Bhubaneswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) will jointly begin a joint plantation drive in all open places and roadsides in and around the city. The Urban Development took an important decision in this regard on Monday.
Plantation will be done in open government lands in ward no 67, government office premises, residential welfare associations and besides the water bodies in the city and its outskirts.
The OFDC will provide saplings to the BMC, mainly rapidly growing plants, said a senior official of the Department of Housing & Urban Development.
The decision comes following the urban heat island (UHI) effect in Bhubaneswar that makes some pockets warmer compared to surrounding rural areas.
The UHI effect is attributed to an increase in concrete surface, roads and buildings in a city with reduced green cover.
Persistently high temperature at night with no relief even after sunset is one of the main effects of UHI, weather experts say.
