MADURAI: The corporation has sent proposals to the forest department for afforestation drive and improve the city's green cover. During the September council meeting, councillors had emphasised the importance of maintaining parks in the city. "They play a major role in the lives of residents. Yet many parks are poorly maintained over the years. We had raised the issue several times in the past council meetings," one councillor said.
Anbarasan, a resident from Madurai, said similar to the afforestation in roundabouts, action should be taken to improve the green cover in corporation parks. Over the past couple of weeks, the corporation carried out a special survey in the city parks. A senior official said a special proposal has been sent under the 15th CFC 2023 - 24. "A total of `20 crore worth proposals have been sent (`3.09 crore for Urban Afforestation, `38.75 lakh for Paravai town panchayat greening initiative and `16.61 crores for road paving works," he added.
Environment enthusiasts said the green cover of the district, as per forest department data, is less than 20%. "Though the corporation's afforestation drive is appreciable, it should be properly maintained to improve green cover in the city," they added.