Need to increase green cover to tackle soaring summer heat: Minister Yadav

Union Minister Bhupendra Yadav on Sunday stressed the need to increase green cover to deal with soaring temperatures during summer.

The union environment minister joined the ongoing campaign to plant 51 lakh saplings in Indore.

Speaking on the occasion, Yadav said humans built concrete cities on the earth but destroyed greenery in the race for development.

"This year, we have experienced temperatures soaring to 45 to 50 degrees Celsius in many parts of the country. In the race for development, humans have built concrete cities on earth but destroyed the greenery," he said.

The "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" campaign launched under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on World Environment Day on June 5 is about respecting Mother Earth.

According to officials, the plantation drive in Indore will end on July 14.

Yadav planted a sapling at a programme organised at the Border Security Force (BSF) campus in the Bijasan area under the campaign "Apne Indore Ke Liye, Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" in the presence of Chief Minister Mohan Yadav and Cabinet Minister Kailash Vijayvargiya.

The chief minister said there is a plan to plant 5.50 crore saplings in the state, with 51 lakh in Indore alone.

"Indore ranks number one in the country for cleanliness. I wish that it remains number one in the category of green cities in the country," he said.