Wish to know how much carbon dioxide is absorbed by the big trees at Pune’s? Empress Garden This project will soon tell you
The exercise measures the sizes of the around 1,700 large trees at Empress Garden in Pune, besides other parameters, with the help of an app developed by The Green Concept which will then calculate the carbon sequestration.
Empress Garden is collaborating with The Green Concept, a company based in Pune and Berlin. (Wikimedia Commons)
For more than 150 years, the Empress Botanical Garden has been serving as one of the green lungs of Pune. Now, in possibly the first such exercise for a public park in India, the garden is carrying out an exercise to estimate how much carbon the grand, old trees have sequestered.
Carbon sequestering is a process by which plants, the earth and oceans, among others, capture carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and store it. Since the industrial age, the amount of carbon dioxide in the air has been increasing and to a great extent, mitigating climate change is about reducing the carbon dioxide in the air.
Empress Garden is collaborating with The Green Concept, a company based in Pune and Berlin – comprising environmental scientists, ecologists, botanists and data scientists – that specialises in applied ecology, carbon assessments and ecosystem restoration. The project will estimate the amount of carbon dioxide being removed by the trees at the garden.
“The project started in January and we have been identifying species of the trees. According to previous estimates, there are around 1,700 trees in the garden. We are considering only big, grown trees that have a girth of more than 30 cm. There are many more shrubs and grasses in the garden but they are, right now, not our focus. Measuring certain parameters of the trees would, with the help of an app developed by The Green Concept, allow the calculation of carbon sequestration. We are collecting the data right now,” says Dr Dhanashree Paranjpe, programme director at the Rupa Rahul Bajaj Centre for Environment & Art (RRBCEA) which is housed at Empress Garden.
“Our primary objective is to implement research-based solutions for creating climate-resilient landscapes and bolstering ecological resilience through data-driven and observational decision-making,” says Dr Rohan Shetti, founder.
So far, measurements for around 700 trees have been completed. “Our target is such that, in the next couple of months, at least 95 per cent of the trees would be measured in the garden. We are really proud that this is one of the first projects in India where a 39-acre park is getting the whole carbon sequestration estimate done. It is going to help us not just get a sense of what is the diversity or how this is the green space, but actually put scientific numbers to it,” says Dr Paranjpe.
The data will be available on an interactive dashboard where “one can click on a particular tree and find out not only its height and girth but also its location in the garden and the amount of carbon it has sequestered.”
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“It will show you this information and also tell you what it translates into in your day-to-day life. For instance, if one tree sequestered a certain amount of carbon dioxide…it is equivalent to driving so-and-so distance in a particular car. These sort of comparisons that generally anybody can understand are important because, otherwise, the numbers just remain numbers and people who are not familiar with the concept don’t get what it really means,” Dr Paranjpe says.
“The dashboard is really going to help people understand how much carbon dioxide is being offset because of the green trees that have been standing here for so many years,” she adds.
As this exercise requires some training and knowledge, the staff and a few college students who are interning are involved. “We visit each tree with tags that have QR codes provided by The Green Concept and fix one tag to each tree. Then we basically measure the tree’s height, girth and, if possible, the canopy diameter. We note down all these things so that they can be directly entered into the app along with identification of the tree according to its species,” Dr Paranjpe explains.
“There are many trees that are difficult to identify as they don’t belong to this region but are native to some other part of India or the world. So, we are trying to identify all the trees and also these major parameters,” she says.
Dipanita Nath is a Senior Assistant Editor at The Indian Express, based in Pune. She is a versatile journalist with a deep interest in the intersection of culture, sustainability, and urban life.
Professional Background
Experience: Before joining The Indian Express, she worked with other major news organizations including Hindustan Times, The Times of India, and Mint.
Core Specializations: She is widely recognized for her coverage of the climate crisis, theatre and performing arts, heritage conservation, and the startup ecosystem (often through her "Pune Inc" series).
Storytelling Focus: Her work often unearths "hidden stories" of Pune—focusing on historical institutes, local traditions, and the personal journeys of social innovators.
Recent Notable Articles (December 2025)
Her recent reporting highlights Pune’s cultural pulse and the environmental challenges facing the city during the winter season:
1. Climate & Environment
"Pune shivers on coldest morning of the season; minimum temperature plunges to 6.9°C" (Dec 20, 2025): Reporting on the record-breaking cold wave in Pune and the IMD's forecast for the week.
"How a heritage tree-mapping event at Ganeshkhind Garden highlights rising interest in Pune’s green legacy" (Dec 20, 2025): Covering a citizen-led initiative where Gen Z and millennials gathered to document and protect ancient trees at a Biodiversity Heritage Site.
"Right to breathe: Landmark NGT order directs PMC to frame norms for pollution from construction sites" (Dec 8, 2025): Reporting on a significant legal victory for residents fighting dust and air pollution in urban neighborhoods like Baner.
2. "Hidden Stories" & Heritage
"Inside Pune library that’s nourished minds of entrepreneurs for 17 years" (Dec 21, 2025): A feature on the Venture Center Library, detailing how a collection of 3,500 specialized books helps tech startups navigate the product life cycle.
"Before he died, Ram Sutar gave Pune a lasting gift" (Dec 18, 2025): A tribute to the legendary sculptor Ram Sutar (creator of the Statue of Unity), focusing on his local works like the Chhatrapati Shivaji statue at Pune airport.
"The Pune institute where MA Jinnah was once chief guest" (Dec 6, 2025): An archival exploration of the College of Agriculture, established in 1907, and its historical role in India's freedom struggle.
3. Arts, Theatre & "Pune Inc"
"Satyajit Ray, Ritwik Ghatak were not rivals but close friends, says veteran filmmaker" (Dec 17, 2025): A deep-dive interview ahead of the Pune International Film Festival (PIFF) exploring the camaraderie between legends of Indian cinema.
"Meet the Pune entrepreneur helping women build and scale businesses" (Dec 16, 2025): Part of her "Pune Inc" series, profiling Nikita Vora’s efforts to empower female-led startups.
"How women drone pilots in rural Maharashtra are cultivating a green habit" (Dec 12, 2025): Exploring how technology is being used by women in agriculture to reduce chemical use and labor.
Signature Style
Dipanita Nath is known for intellectual curiosity and a narrative-driven approach. Whether she is writing about a 110-year-old eatery or the intricacies of the climate crisis, she focuses on the human element and the historical context. Her columns are often a blend of reportage and cultural commentary, making them a staple for readers interested in the "soul" of Pune.
X (Twitter): @dipanitanath ... Read More
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