Tree pruning on roads every 6 months: Delhi PWD issues SOP for greenery maintenance

The Public Works Department (PWD) has issued a fresh standard operating procedure (SOP) to maintain greenery on its roads better and also enhance public safety in the process.

As per the instructions issued on Tuesday, pruning of trees on its roads every six months and removal of dead trees from central verges is to be ensured by officials.

“The aim of SOP is to ensure plant health, public safety, aesthetic enhancement, and environmental sustainability through regular maintenance and timely plantation. Tree, hedges and shrubs on central verges of roads are to maintain a uniform height,” the PWD’s order states.

The height for trees on central verges is allowed up to 5 metres, and for hedges and shrubs, it is 1-1.2 metres, across the city.

Last month, a 50-year-old man died, and his daughter suffered a pelvic fracture when a massive Neem tree fell on vehicles crawling on an inundated road in Delhi’s Kalkaji. The road-owning agency was the PWD.

The greenery maintenance plans also direct the dead and diseased branches, or branches interfering with electric lines and streetlights, to be removed after obtaining necessary permissions from the forest department, officials said.

The horticulture wing of the PWD has also been directed to ensure tree branches, plants and shrubs on footpaths and central verges do not obstruct the view of traffic lights, road signage, U-turns, etc., and proper cleaning of central verges and footpaths is done.

“The height of trees on central verges is to be maintained at five meters. For better care of the green areas, weeding out, cleaning, and watering will have to be done regularly; soil loosening on a fortnightly basis; and chemical and farmyard fertilization a minimum of twice a year,” reads the maintenance plan.

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The PWD has also directed proper manpower deployment for the maintenance of vegetation on its roads.

“A minimum number of one gardener per 2500 square meters of green area will be required to be deployed; all workers should wear proper uniforms approved by the engineer-in-charge; otherwise, a penalty of Rs 50 per worker per day will be imposed on the service provider,” the plan states.

The PWD maintains a road network of 1,400 km, which mainly comprises main roads that are wide enough to have central verges, footpaths, and roadsides. In the future, all the horticulture-related work tenders will have these guidelines as the basis of confirming the contract.