Visakhapatnam: Saplings to be geo-tagged

Visakhapatnam: In a major thrust to the monitoring of plantation programme, as many as 16 lakh saplings, to be planted in the district in the current fiscal, would be geo-tagged. Speaking to Deccan Chronicle, Andhra Pradesh Pollution Control Board environment engineer R Lakshmi Narayana who would coordinate the geo-tagging project said a private firm, Blue Frog Technologies, could be given the task of geo-tagging the saplings.

“The district administration, GVMC and VUDA are working on to finalise the places where plantation could be taken up. Various species of saplings would be planted with geo-tagging project as the state government is aiming at to have 50 per cent of the total geographical land of the state under greenery,” Geo-tagging of plants means to make a database of each plants by noting down the location of plant with its co-ordinates like latitude and longitude, keeping the contact details of nearby households, companies or commercial establishments, and taking photos of each plant in different angles. The database would help to analyse whether the saplings planted at particular geographical location growing or not.GVMC assistant director of horticulture M. Damodar said for the first time 49,000 saplings were geo-tagged in the city post Hudhud.

“The geo-tagging technology has helped to make the plantation projects accountable. About 80 per cent of the saplings survived due to proper care with monitoring through the tagging process.”