New Delhi,  The Delhi government will set up a nine-member committee to suggest alternatives to overcome the land shortage for tree plantations in the national capital.

Delhi Environment Minister Gopal Rai on Friday said that it has also been decided to set up a nine-member Green Cover Development Committee to suggest alternatives to overcome the shortage of land for tree plantations

The panel will have members from the Public Works Department, DDA, Forest Department, municipal corporations, School of Planning and Architecture, Central Public Works Department, Delhi Urban Arts Commission and the IARI-PUSA, he said during a press briefing on Friday.

The minister announced this while rejecting a request by the Delhi Development Authority to revise the compensatory plantation scheme guidelines in the city.

The government will instead ask the DDA to inform how much land is available for plantation in the capital, he said.

"The DDA wrote to the Delhi Forest Department saying it does not have land for the compensatory plantation. They have requested us to make changes in the guidelines. We are rejecting the request considering the status of the environment in Delhi," he said in the briefing.

Environment Minister Rai also said the government will ask the Dehradun-based Forest Research Institute to conduct a third-party audit of tree transplantation in Delhi.

"Over the last two to three years, 27 agencies and departments have been allowed to transplant trees for their developmental work", said Rai, adding that all have been directed to submit a report on the number of trees transplanted, their locations and their survival rate by May 13.

A report suggests a project-wise survival rate of up to 55 per cent. However, some agencies have performed poorly, he added. Based on the FRI audit report, the government will blacklist agencies and departments which have fared badly and review their permission for construction work, the minister said.