Bhubaneswar: The administration here has decided to increase the greenery, but lack of care has robbed the city of several green patches.

Last May, civic officials had taken up a plantation drive and converted the barren Raj Mahal Square into a lush green garden.

However, the junction is back to what it was with the plants dying for want of care and poor maintenance. Now the plants have vanished with the authorities executing the Janpath project under the ambitious Smart City Mission.

The roundabout and the connecting median on the junction have been dug up for the Smart Janpath project and dumped construction materials have killed the plants.

"It is not wise of the city administration to kill plants in this manner," said environmentalist Alok Mohanty.

Lakhs were spent for ornamental gardening at Raj Mahal Square. The Bhuban-eswar Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the Bhubaneswar Development Authority (BDA) had undertaken the plantation to beautify the city prior to last year's Asian Athletics Championship.

When asked about the death of the plants and waste of money, a senior smart city official said there were plans to plant saplings on the medians and both sides of the road.

"Plantation is one of the major component of Smart Janpath project and it will done," he said.

BMC and BDA officials as usual traded charges for the death of the plants. However, the officials had no idea about the amount spent on the drive or the number of saplings planted at Raj Mahal Square.

"It is highly irresponsible of the authorities to leave the plants in such a manner. They continue to cut trees in the name of development and when it comes to compensating the loss, they do nothing. Raj Mahal Square looked beautiful with the plants, but now it is a barren patch," said Mihir Jena, a shopkeeper at Bapuji Nagar.

BDA chief horticulturist A.N. Dhar said they had engaged a contractor for the plantation job at Raj Mahal Square. "We gave away the contract to a private party. The contractor should have maintained it," said Dhar. He said the plants would be reclaimed as part of the Janpath project.

He said they only took care of the plantation taken up by them and were not authorised to maintain saplings of others.

"There is no file with us about what had been done at Raj Mahal Square. We are not authorised to maintain or take care of saplings at that junction. If we are asked to, we will do it," said Kapilendra Sethi, BMC's environment officer.