The government launched the Green Roadways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification, and Maintenance) Policy in 2015, with the goal of helping the environment, local communities, and creating jobs by planting trees along all of the country's highways. The first year's goal is to plant trees along 6,000 kilometres of route. The Green Highway Policy will contribute to India being pollution-free. It will also contribute to a reduction in the number of vehicle accidents in India. This article will explain to you about Green Highways (Plantation, Transplantation, Beautification & Maintenance) Policy, 2015 which will be helpful in preparing the Environment Syllabus for the UPSC Civil Service exam.

Green Highways Policy - Objectives

• To create a policy framework for planting along National Highways.
• To reduce the impact of air pollution and dust since shrubs and trees are considered to be natural air polluter sinks.
• During the summer, to give much-needed shade on blazing hot roadways.
• Reduce the impact of noise pollution induced by an increase in the number of vehicles.
• To prevent soil erosion on embankment slopes.
• To avoid glare from approaching cars' headlights.
• To lessen the impact of wind and incoming radiation.
• To create job possibilities for local residents.

Green Highways Policy - Salient Features

• Based on the legal status of the existing road-side plantations, the entire Highways network will be divided into two categories.
  • Plantations along highways that have been designated as protected forests are either done by the forest department for management purposes or are naturally grown trees.
  • Under the Forest Conservation Act of 1980, permission from the forest department is required for tree cutting in these areas.
  • In other areas, roadside plantations may be undertaken by the contractor or concessionaire, the forest department and the department dealing with Watershed Development in the State, Self Help Groups (SHGs), Joint Forest Management Committees (JFMC), or open bidding by empanelled agencies.
• Encourage the greening and development of environmentally friendly National Highway corridors throughout the country with the participation of farmers, the private sector, and government institutions such as the Forest Department.
• It will address the issues that are impeding development and pave the way for long-term development.
• Contracts for greening highways will be awarded to non-governmental organisations (NGOs), agencies, private companies, and government organisations. These stakeholders will be in charge of the survival and health of the trees.
• The planting of trees in any given area will be determined by soil suitability and climatic conditions.
• Monitoring Agency: It will be in charge of continuously monitoring the plantation status by conducting site visits for field verification to ensure the survival, growth, and size of the plantation, as well as its maintenance.
• On an annual basis, the agency will conduct a performance audit of executing agencies. The agencies will be awarded new contracts based on their past performance audit.
• The policy's implications are that it will strike a balance between highway development and environmental protection. It will also assist in the employment of 5 lakh rural residents.
• Wherever possible, the emphasis will be on tree transplantation rather than tree cutting.
• One percent of the total cost of all highway projects will be set aside for highway plantation and maintenance.
• A total of Rs.1000 crore will be available for plantation purposes each year.
• ISRO's Bhuvan and GAGAN satellite systems will be used to provide a strong monitoring mechanism. Every tree that is planted will be counted and audited.

Green Highways Policy - Significance

• In light of the increasing number of climate change-related adverse events, as well as unabated infrastructure and road development for economic prosperity without regard for environmental consequences, such a government scheme is significant because it aims to mitigate the loss of vegetation that is unavoidable with development works.
• According to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), national highways account for around 2% of Indian roadways and account for 40% of automotive traffic.
• This network's present carbon dioxide emissions are 391 million tonnes, with a projected increase to 966 million tonnes by 2030.
• Creating green corridors throughout this network is intended to assist India meet its pledge made at CoP 21 in Paris in 2015 to reduce carbon emissions by 35%.
• Creating green roads is also an effective post-COVID management option because of its socioeconomic and environmental benefits.
• Greening roadways may help to cut carbon emissions, maintain biodiversity, boost agroforestry, and generate carbon sinks, all while creating employment and resources locally.
• It will also help create an innovative green highways-based MSME (micro, small, and medium) ecosystem.
• For each region, a plantation species matrix was created so that native species and trees that fit the terrain and weather could be planted.

Green National Highways Corridor Project 2020

• The Indian government and the World Bank signed a $500 million initiative named the Green National Highways Corridors Project in December 2020.
• This project will assist the National Green Highways Mission in putting the National Green Highways Policy into action.
• The initiative will also strengthen the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways' capabilities to integrate safety and green technology.
• The Project is divided into three components:
  • Green Highway Corridor Improvement and Maintenance: A five-year upgrade and maintenance programme for about 783 kilometres of selected existing National Highways in Himachal Pradesh, Rajasthan, Andhra Pradesh, and Uttar Pradesh.
  • Institutional Capacity Establishing: Assisting the Ministry in building capacity to protect natural resources, improve the climatic sensitivity of the National Highways network, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
  • Road safety: Assisting in the improvement of road safety data analytics as well as highway safety monitoring and implementation.

Conclusion

The policy's vision is to involve local communities in plantation work. The National Forest Policy calls for forest or tree cover to cover 33 percent of the geographical area, but the notified forest cover is only about 22 percent. The new Green Highways Policy, if implemented, can help to bridge this gap. The emphasis is not only on the number of trees planted, but also on how many of them survive and serve the communities.