LAHORE: The Punjab Green Credit Programme is offering financial incentives to citizens for taking part in environmentally friendly activities, including recycling plastic bottles, planting trees and using bicycles.
According to the programme’s official dashboard, more than 1.44 million citizens have registered for the Chief Minister Punjab Green Credit Programme within 14 months, while its scope has expanded to 41 districts across the province.
Registrations increased by 18% over the previous week, with an average of around 476 new users joining the programme each day.
Under the initiative, citizens can earn green credits by carrying out a range of environmentally friendly activities. These include purchasing and using electric bikes or scooters, recycling plastic bottles, reporting smoke-emitting vehicles, cycling, planting trees and taking measures to conserve rainwater.
Citizens can earn up to Rs2,500 in green credits for collecting one kilogramme of empty plastic bottles, with a maximum of four kilogrammes eligible under the programme. This means up to Rs10,000 can be earned through plastic bottle recycling.
Two registered vendors in Lahore are currently available for the purchase and collection of plastic and empty bottles, which are subsequently sent for recycling.
The programme also provides incentives for electric bike and scooter users. According to the scheme, eligible citizens can receive green credits linked to the purchase and subsequent use of electric bikes, subject to the programme’s conditions.
Other eligible activities include identifying smoke-emitting vehicles, reporting industrial units operating without zigzag technology, conserving rainwater, constructing recharge wells, cycling and planting 10 trees.
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Reports suggest that the programme currently covers 38 environment-friendly activities. So far, citizens have received around Rs36.5 million in payments, including approximately Rs16.5 million during the last three months.
The programme has also attracted female participants. Official figures cited in the report show 124,292 men and 18,149 women have registered.
Officials say the objective is not merely to register citizens but to encourage them to actively participate in environmentally friendly activities.
Under the programme, activities are monitored, reported and verified before green credits are issued.
The scheme’s basic mechanism is simple: citizens undertake an environmentally beneficial activity, have it verified through the monitoring system and receive financial rewards in return.
