Residents Urged to Take Up Household Greening; HMDA Distributes Saplings to 800 Families 

The Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) has stepped up its urban greening efforts by distributing 4,000 saplings to 800 families during the Nursery Mela organised at Necklace Road on Friday. The initiative, led by HMDA's Urban Forestry wing in association with City Terrace Gardeners (CTG), aims to encourage households to create green spaces within residential premises.

Under the programme, each family received five saplings comprising three fruit plants and two medicinal or ornamental plants, distributed based on Aadhaar authentication. The event witnessed a strong response from residents, reflecting growing public interest in home gardening and urban greenery.

HMDA Urban Forestry Director Rohit Gopidi, who participated in the programme, said Hyderabad's rapid urbanisation, rising pollution levels, shrinking green cover, concerns over chemically treated food and the increasing incidence of lifestyle diseases have made household greening more important than ever.

He said HMDA Urban Forestry has set a target of distributing free saplings to one lakh families this year to increase public participation in expanding the city's green cover. The programme is designed to encourage residents to grow fruit-bearing, medicinal and ornamental plants within their homes.

The saplings distributed included mango, Indian gooseberry (amla), lemon, henna, lemongrass, Acalypha Brown, Tecoma and Jammi.

Calling on citizens to treat tree planting as a people's movement, Rohit Gopidi urged residents to contribute towards transforming Hyderabad into a greener and healthier metropolis by planting and nurturing saplings in their homes.