How green was my city!

HYDERABAD: In the concrete jungle that the city is, children grow up without even so much as touching a plant, except perhaps at a park once in a blue moon. While one cannot ignore the requirements of development of any urban space, has Hyderabad been able to maintain a balance between ecological and economical concerns? The answer from most officials, activists and citizens is a resounding NO.Mention Hyderabad’s green heritage to him, Haleem Akhter Siddiqui, one of the owners of The Deccan Pen Stores, travels back in time to describe how the city was draped in green just a few decades ago. Born in the 50s, Akhter Siddiqui has spent all his life in the city. He has been a resident of Abids and even to this day, all his brothers stay together in the haveli built by his father in the early 30s. “How beautiful the roads were! We had trees on either side of the road at the Troop Bazar. The stretch between the post-office and the Women’s College had about 500 trees and I remember municipal vans used to make two trips in the morning. Once to clean the roads and next, to water the trees,” he recalls with evident nostalgia.According to him, even in 1992 when one of his friends wanted to set up shop in Ameerpet he was taken aback as he considered it a forest. “Look how it has transformed now! I can see just brick and cement everywhere. Greenlands isn’t green anymore,” he quips.“Now the municipality speaks about turning the city green again. How can they replace such a huge number of trees?” he wonders. Haleem Akhter’s opinion echoes many people’s sentiments and concerns. “...humanity should become capable of respecting the finiteness of the biosphere; neither the aspiration for the good life, nor the recognition of biophysical limits should preclude the search for greater justice in the world,” says the National Environmental Policy. The policy encourages sustainable development where citizens can live in harmony with nature. It also specifies 33 percent greenery for any area to have a balance between nature and progress. While it is definitely encouraging, have urban spaces been able to accommodate 33 percent greenery? “It is not practically possible,” reply activists and officials alike. While a few think 12 percent is the achievable limit, officials keep it at a minimal 6-8 percent.This props up another question. Does Hyderabad have at least this minimum amount of greenery? The answer again is a repetitive no, though a few officials claim we have been able to strike a fair balance between ecology and economy.In reality, there has been no comprehensive study undertaken till now to assess the percentage of greenery in the city. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has this project in its pipeline and will soon be conducting a study on the same. “After the Outer Ring Road has come up, numerous trees in that stretch have been chopped. There is obviously not enough greenery in the city,” says Farida Tampal, state director of WWF. For every tree cut, five saplings have to be planted. That will help us strike a balance, she explains. On their part, the officials cite several challenges to achieve the intended balance. The city is basically a rocky area. In a city like Bangalore and Trivandrum one does not have to take care of a plant after it’s planted. Seasonal rains will take care of them. Here, one has to take extra care to water the plants. Also, most of the trees planted by the government are alien to the land and hence, need expensive maintenance, points out a former official of the GHMC who does not wish to be named. Another problem the officials are facing is that of unauthorised layouts. “There are so many unauthorised layouts springing up in the city. The corporation rules specify that each road and every building must leave space for trees. When people develop layouts illegally, they want to turn every inch of it to their benefit. These layouts have roads that are too narrow to have space for trees,” says V Narender Rao, additional chief city planner, GHMC. He feels the registration department has to be more vigilant when granting permissions. We have the AP Water, Land and Trees Act (WALTA), National Environmental Policy and Layout Regulation Rules. “These are policy statements. What we need are statute-based mandates which will compel authorities to implement these policy statements,” says Dr K Vidyullatha Reddy, associate professor of law, NALSAR University of Law. While the issue is being tossed between activists and the government, as a resident what could one do? Plant as many saplings as possible.