Delhi plans month-long ‘Van Mahotsav’ in July to expand city’s green cover

Delhi Environment Minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa on Monday unveiled the department’s plan to host Van Mahotsav 2025, a month-long campaign to expand Delhi’s green cover and deepen citizens’ emotional connection with nature.

The minister announced that the festival would be inaugurated on July 3rd, 2025, at Bharat Mandapam and is expected the participation of dignitaries, environmentalists, industrialists, students, and citizens.

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A “Van Mela” exhibiting a range of exotic, ornamental, and medicinal plants will be on display during these celebrations. To encourage participation from the community to make the city green and counter pollution issues, the department will also be distributing free saplings to the residents of Delhi and has urged them to visit the exhibition and collect their favourite plants.

“Van Mahotsav is not just a plantation drive — it’s a people’s festival of green resolve, a tribute to nature, and a deeply emotional journey. We are transforming it into a mass movement in Delhi — involving every citizen, leader, and community — because combating pollution requires collective climate consciousness,” said Sirsa, issuing a formal directive to the forest department.

The campaign also aims to draw in National Awardees (Padma, Gallantry, Sports, Science, etc.), Media Heads and Editors, Industrialists and CSR leaders, besides the dignitaries, for the tree plantation drive across the length and breadth of Delhi. These events will be widely publicised to encourage mass participation from the citizens.

The Minister also highlighted that Deputy Conservators of Forests will coordinate local plantation events within each Assembly constituency, engaging MPs and MLAs, municipal leaders, ward councillors, Prominent Citizens, citizens’ groups, and institutions.

To make the event a success, the forest department has been directed to coordinate with the civic bodies, including NDMC, MCD, DDA, and Delhi Police to provide logistics support, including saplings availability, venue preparation, and safety and hygiene of the premises.

“We have pledged to plant more than 70 lakh trees across Delhi, and this Van Mahotsav marks a decisive step toward that promise — not just in numbers, but in nurturing a green conscience,” said Sirsa.