Chennai: A 137-hectare (338-acre) botanical garden will soon come up on the outskirts of the city. The state department of the environment has completed the location, Kadambur village on GST v road Chengalpet District. It is located just 20 km from Arignar Anna Animal Park in Vandalur.
The garden, which will be home to climate-tolerant plants and will also have flora to suit Chennai’s weather conditions, is planned under Green Tamil Nadu Mission as part of efforts to increase the country’s green cover from the current 23.7% to 33%, the Minister of Forests K Ramachandran he said. The announcement was made in the national budget in March this year.
When it becomes operational, it will be the third such facility in and around Chennai after Semmozhi Poonga on Cathedral Road and the one in Madhavaram. These, however, are spread over only 20 hectares, while the proposed garden will spread over 300 hectares. And it will cost 300 crores as against 40 to 80 lakhs that these facilities cost.
The department has allocated the necessary amount for the project and is in the process of preparing a detailed report on the project. Once this is complete, by March 2023, work on the garden is expected to begin following the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Kew Gardens, a non-departmental public company based in the United Kingdom and known for its expertise in setting up botanical gardens. Kew Gardens will be guided by the state environment department, including providing technical expertise on how to handle the plants and what species to plant. The MoU is still under discussion.
Officials said only plant species resilient to climate change would be used and that a preliminary report listing species from tropical evergreen and temperate forests had already been shortlisted.
A district forest official said that the revenue department’s land in Kadambur village has been selected for the project. “It will include different types of gardens such as floral, aesthetic, bamboo satum, herb garden, mini forest and so on. Green houses and glass houses will be created for the survival of exotic or non-native species,” he said.
The garden, which will be home to climate-tolerant plants and will also have flora to suit Chennai’s weather conditions, is planned under Green Tamil Nadu Mission as part of efforts to increase the country’s green cover from the current 23.7% to 33%, the Minister of Forests K Ramachandran he said. The announcement was made in the national budget in March this year.
When it becomes operational, it will be the third such facility in and around Chennai after Semmozhi Poonga on Cathedral Road and the one in Madhavaram. These, however, are spread over only 20 hectares, while the proposed garden will spread over 300 hectares. And it will cost 300 crores as against 40 to 80 lakhs that these facilities cost.
The department has allocated the necessary amount for the project and is in the process of preparing a detailed report on the project. Once this is complete, by March 2023, work on the garden is expected to begin following the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Kew Gardens, a non-departmental public company based in the United Kingdom and known for its expertise in setting up botanical gardens. Kew Gardens will be guided by the state environment department, including providing technical expertise on how to handle the plants and what species to plant. The MoU is still under discussion.
Officials said only plant species resilient to climate change would be used and that a preliminary report listing species from tropical evergreen and temperate forests had already been shortlisted.
A district forest official said that the revenue department’s land in Kadambur village has been selected for the project. “It will include different types of gardens such as floral, aesthetic, bamboo satum, herb garden, mini forest and so on. Green houses and glass houses will be created for the survival of exotic or non-native species,” he said.