West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendu Adhikari on Friday pledges a massive West Bengal tree plantation campaign named ‘Ekti Gaach Mayer Naame’, targeting 1.10 crore trees by March 2027, while raising alarm over rapid concretisation of Kolkata and shrinking green cover.

Speaking at a state-level World Environment Day event at Nalban in Bidhannagar, Adhikari said unchecked urban expansion under the previous regime had turned Greater Kolkata into a “concrete jungle”, ignoring mandatory green space norms in construction projects.

“Greater Kolkata region is gradually turning into a concrete jungle… We have created vast stretches of concrete and will have to pay the price for this injustice in the future,” he said.

Adhikari announced that the new government would strictly enforce rules requiring at least one-third of construction project areas to be maintained as green spaces. He also expressed concern over declining forest land in North Bengal and its impact on ecological balance.

The West Bengal tree plantation initiative, coordinated by the forest department, will involve large-scale sapling plantation across the state over the next 10 months. The drive was symbolically launched with Adhikari planting an indigenous sapling along the Nalban waterbody, followed by the release of fish fingerlings to restore aquatic ecosystems.

The Chief Minister said educational institutions, clubs and social organisations forming eco-clubs would receive financial assistance from the state government. He urged citizens, especially the youth, to make environmental protection a way of life beyond just observing Environment Day.

Senior officials, including the chief secretary and department heads, along with 50 student ‘environment ambassadors’ under Mission LiFE, participated in the event.