Telangana Budget: More funds for Haritha Haram

The government through its afforestation initiative rejuvenated 13 lakh acres of forest land incurring an expenditure of Rs 1,500 crore

Hyderabad: Continuing to give priority to increasing the green cover, the State government has proposed Rs 1,471 crore for the Forest Department and Haritha Haram programme.

The government through its afforestation initiative rejuvenated 13 lakh acres of forest land incurring an expenditure of Rs 1,500 crore. For protecting forest lands, fences have been erected covering a length of 11,000 km.

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All these measures have aided in the protection of forests, besides a significant increase in the number of wild animals. The number of tigers increased to 26 and the number of leopards to 341. Many species of birds on the verge of extinction regained their habitats, said Finance Minister T Harish Rao in the State Assembly here on Monday.

As per the new Municipal and Panchayat Acts, it is mandatory for the Municipalities and Panchayats to allocate 10 per cent of their Annual Budget to Green Budget and develop greenery. With local bodies taking up different measures and extensive plantations drives, there is abundant greenery in every village and town across the State.

As per the India Forest Report, 2021 prepared by the Forest Survey of India, green cover in Telangana has increased by 7.70 per cent. This is equivalent to 5.13 lakh acres, he said. Donations were being received from public representatives, government employees, government departments, students, and others for Haritha Nidhi to take up different works.