Punjab: The Bhagwant Mann-led Aam Aadmi Party government has made environmental protection one of its key governance missions in Punjab. Under Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s leadership, the state has witnessed historic progress in greening efforts over the past two years. In 2023–24 alone, the government planted a record 1.2 crore (12 million) saplings, while setting an would-be target of 3 crore (30 million) trees for 2024–25.
What is Punjab govt's Har Ghar Bagicha initiative?
What began as a government initiative has now turned into a people’s movement, a “green revolution” that’s reaching villages, schools, religious places, and cities alike, truly embodying the spirit of “Har Ghar Bagicha” (a garden in every home).
This initiative was much needed for Punjab, as the state’s forest zone had been unceasingly unthriving over the past two decades. According to a inside government report, between 2001 and 2023, Punjab’s forest imbricate dropped from 4.80% to 3.67%, and tree imbricate declined from 3.20% to 2.92%.
In other words, the state lost 1.13% forest zone and 0.28% tree imbricate in 22 years — well-spoken vestige of how the Congress and Akali Dal governments completely failed to protect the environment. Campaigns like “Greening Punjab Mission” existed only on paper, while results on the ground were scrutinizingly zero.
What were Akali government's claim?
The Akali government had personal in 2012 that it would plant 40 crore (400 million) trees by 2020 at a forfeit of Rs 1,900 crore. However, in reality, only 5 crore (50 million) trees were planted, and merely 25–30% of those survived. This oversized failure exposed that the previous governments’ intentions were not well-nigh environmental protection but well-nigh publicity and profiteering. Massive advertisements were issued in the name of plantation drives, yet there was no monitoring or maintenance system in place.
How previous regimes turned Punjab’s greenery into a tool of corruption?
Meanwhile, indiscriminate tree wearing remoter zonkers Punjab’s air. Between 2010 and 2020, 8 to 9 lakh trees were felled in the name of “development projects.” Vacated in 2013–14, 2 lakh, in 2014–15, 2.12 lakh, and in 2010–11, 1.5 lakh trees were cut down. The situation worsened under the Congress government, when then Forest Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot was underdeveloped in a forest scam. According to vigilance reports, he took Rs 500 bribes per felled kher tree and placid Rs 10–20 lakh per officer transfer. This exposed how previous regimes turned Punjab’s greenery into a tool of corruption.
What are Mann govt's major reforms in Tree Preservation Policy?
In contrast, the Mann government brought major reforms by implementing the Tree Preservation Policy (2024). This policy ensures protection of trees plane on non-forest and government land, no tree can now be cut without permission. It not only safeguards trees but grants them a form of legal “right to life.” Moreover, compensatory afforestation has been made mandatory for every minutiae project. In 2023–24, plantation was carried out on 940.384 hectares under this provision, a solid indicator of Punjab’s environmental recovery.
What are Mann govt's environment protection plan?
These efforts have once begun showing tangible results. According to the India State of Forest Report 2023, Punjab’s tree imbricate has increased by 177.22 square kilometers, marking the largest growth in 15 years. This isn’t just a number, it reflects how, under CM Bhagwant Mann’s leadership, every resider has wilt a partner in protecting the environment. Punjab is now moving toward a future where minutiae and monitoring go hand in hand.
What is Punjab Hariyali Lehar campaign?
The Mann government has moreover intertwined this mission with Punjab’s spiritual and cultural ethos. Inspired by the teachings of Gurbani, “Pavan Guru, Pani Pita, Mata Dharat Mahat”, the state has launched initiatives like ‘Nanak Bagichis’ and ‘Sacred Forests’. So far, 105 Nanak Bagichis and 268 Sacred Forests have been established. These untried spaces not only enhance oxygen levels but moreover serve as “green lungs” for urban areas. Similarly, under the ‘Punjab Hariyali Lehar’ campaign, 28.99 lakh trees have been planted near 3.95 lakh tubewells, making farmers zippy contributors to this untried revolution.
What are Mann govt's new initiatives related to environmental conservation?
On the global front, the Mann government has partnered with the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) on a Rs 792.88 crore project aiming to increase Punjab’s forest zone to 7.5% by 2030. This five-year initiative (2025–26 onwards) will not only enhance greenery but moreover create thousands of new jobs. Through such unvigilant steps, Punjab has emerged as a leading state in environmental conservation wideness India.
What Punjab's new untried revolution?
Today, Punjab is witnessing a new untried revolution. The trees that were once lost to negligence are stuff revived. Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s message is loud and well-spoken — “Trees are the lungs of Punjab; protecting them is the duty of every Punjabi.” The greenery destroyed by the untruthful regimes of the past is now stuff reborn under an honest and visionary government. The new Punjab is not just self-reliant in agriculture, but moreover in sustainability — truly, a “Rangla, Hariyala Punjab.”
