Planters missing from Chandigarh-Ambala NH

Zirakpur, June 3

Around 20 planters kept on the divider of the Chandigarh-Ambala National Highway near the VUP at Zirakpur have gone missing. The dead, wilted ornamental plants, along with the earth, are lying on the divider now. The Municipal Corporation and PWD officials said around 40 ornamental plants were placed on the newly built VUP to give a greener look to the area; however, what remains are the ruins of theft. Local residents said intense hot weather and no care of the ornamental plants by the Municipal Corporation and the PWD led to the plants wilting in the sun. Seeing the plastic planters go to waste, miscreants thought it better to put them to good use.

A resident of Baltana said, “The plastic planters are light-weight and easy to carry. I saw one miscreant take out the plant along with the earth, keep it on the divider, and flee with the planter on his bike.”

An environmentalist flagged the use of exotic ornamental plants, suggesting that the probability of their survival is very low here. “Had they used indigenous plants for landscaping, they would have survived and looked good too,” he said.