The Green Drive
“The rising pollution levels in the city (New Delhi) upset me. I feared Delhites would succumb to cancer, acute respiratory problems from pollution, if we did not do something about it. It had scared me to see the way in which people had died in Surat due to plague. I didn’t want there to be a cancer patient in every house in Delhi, as was bound to happen, if we continued polluting our city, at this rate. That is why I decided to do something about it myself, instead of waiting for the government to do something,” Daler Mehndi about the Green Drive he has initiated in the capital since the last 4 years.

He calls it the Daler Mehndi Green Drive (DM Green Drive) and has succeeded in planting more than 800,000 trees & saplings to date. With a number of schools and universities joining him in his effort, he hopes to see the day when it will transform from a “one-man show” to a “people’s movement”.

He visited almost all the schools in Delhi and motivated kids to plant trees. So much so that at the Dale Mehndi new year concert, invitees on their way out after the show were given the sacred “Tulsi” sapling in an earthen pot for free.

Every member of his team and office staff had to adopt a tree and monitor its growth.

Every Fan Mailer and the famous Daler Mehndi E-zine regularly carries a picture/ environment fact.

Daler Goes Green
You can't go through life only singing and dancing! There has to be more to it or else it could monotonous.

And that is what our very own Daler Mehndi has realized and has gone green. No, not because he's been eating too much spinach but because he wants to help out a city in polluted doldrums.

Mehndi is all set to launch a D.M. Green Drive," with a view to make Delhi pollution free and give the future generations a cleaner, healthier and safer environment" if the release is to be believed. Plans are afoot to hold audio-visuals sessions on environment for kids in schools, so that, "children can assume the role of teachers in preserving the surroundings."

D.M. (are the man's initials in case you wondered about the name) will participate in all the drives himself. Mehndi has also announced a scholarship for one student (from each participating school) who works with total dedication towards the fulfillment of the purpose of the drive. The scholarship shall include all financial and moral support for a course in Environmental Engineering till the completion of the degree.

Wow! Now that's what we call big-hearted conservation.
The Hindustan Times, May 15, 1998

Daler Mehndi plants 20,000 saplings

Hindi pop singer Daler Mehndi in his clean, healthier and safe environment drive planted more than 20,000saplings in the different areas of the Capital.

The drive started under the name of 'Daler Mehndi Green Drive' (DM Green Drive) began in June and areas including Janakpur Commercial Complex to Peera Garhi Chowk, Nangloi Village and alongside Najafgarh drain were covered. According to him there are some of the glaring facts and the problem of environment is getting more and more compounded by our commission and omissions. For instance, each Delhi residents produces about 0.5 Kg of garbage per day, 12 Kg per month, 144 Kg per year. This adds unto 15 lakh tons of garbage per year in Delhi, he pointed.

Daler Mehndi further stated that citizens of the world produce enough garbage every 30 minutes to make a landfill as large as a football field and 5 times as tall as the Qutub Minar of Delhi. "Everyday 12800 metric tons of toxic fumes are dumped in the air by automobiles in Delhi," informed the noted Hindi pop singer.

He further said that the farming communities throughout the India are currently over fertilizing with chemicals by as much as 90 per cent and account for 40 per cent of the non profit water pollutant due to nitrate run off.
National Herald, Sept 28, 1998

Daler Mehndi hums eco-friendly tunes
Less than a month after he announced his 'green drive' as he was shocked that the city of his adoption was so dirty, Punjabi pop singer Daler Mehndi has been inducted into the Chief Minister's task force to take up the greening task with a broader perspective.

The singer is one of ten persons who constitute the task force, which met last week. The meeting attended by Chief Minister Saheb Singh and the Chief Secretary, was review the work under the Greening Delhi Action Plan 1998-99.

The task force has asked Mehndi to green an area of 10 to 15 miles between Punjabi Bagh & Najafgarh. This would require 6 lakh to 7 lakh saplings, he said.

This is in addition to the announcement made last month by Mehndi that he was planning to plant 8 lakh saplings. The areas include Ring road from Peera Garhi to Janakpuri Chowk, the ITO and Mayapuri flyover intersections, the barren jail road, Nagal Raya Bridge, Pankha Road, and the colonies of west Delhi, Khayala and Tilak Nagar.

He also announced he would raise funds for this purpose through his own resources or through his concerts.
Indian Express, June 17, 1998