HYDERABAD:The bare and stale pillars of flyovers in the twin cities will offer a pleasant sight to the people passing beneath the flyovers soon. As many as 35-40 pillars covering 14 flyovers will have an aesthetic look as vertical gardens are being developed by the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC). Hyderabad Metropolitan Development Authority (HMDA) would develop vertical gardens at Hitech city and Madhapur flyovers. All these would be ready by August 15.
Besides giving an aesthetic look, these vertical gardens will also help in curbing pollution. Such an initiative, they believe, is essential for Hyderabad where pollution is already high than it should be.
The city has also been battling the problem of diminishing greenery for a while now, with trees being chopped off as part of the road widening programmes including Strategic Road Development Programme (SRDP) and elevated corridors.
GHMC officials said that vertical gardens are being taken up along pillars on flyovers at Malakpet, Paradise signal, Begumpet, Hari Hara Kala Bhavan, another two opposite Yashoda Hospital, YMCA signal, Masab Tank, Basheerbagh, Telugu Talli, Greenlands, CM Camp Office Junction and Punjagutta flyover.
Officials of the civic body said that such vertical gardens have already come up in other cities, like Delhi, Bengaluru and Surat and there was positive response from the people.
The vertical gardens are feasible in spaces where horizontal square footage to put in a garden is not possible.In little more than a decade since the idea of sky-rise greenery was promoted in cities across India, numerous sky-rise greenery installations have come up across those cities. Creepers and climbers give it a more aesthetic outlook.
The vertical garden would have automated drip irrigation system and would help reduce urban heat effect, as well as act as a sound-proofing barrier and increase the city’s green belt, the GHMC officials said.
A step closer to green city
GHMC officials said that such vertical gardens have already come up in other cities like Delhi, Bengaluru and Surat and there was positive response from the people