Maharashtra Govt To Plant Over 3 Crore Saplings Across State Starting 1st July

As more and more trees are felled to make way for development, we regularly read disheartening reports of India’s depleting forest cover. So, when we heard of Maharashta governments mass plantation drive, we couldn’t have been happier. Planned for the public thanks to the annual festival of Van Mahotsav, or Forest Day, which falls on July 1, the existing 61.35 lakh hectares of Maharashtran forest land will soon increase by an approximated 33 percent due to this initiative.

“The idea of running a plantation drive clicked to me when I became the minister. People used to garland me as a mark of appreciation. My wife pointed that those garlands go waste. ‘Why don’t you ask them to gift you a sapling instead of that?’ she had asked me that time. I am working on her instructions now,” said Forest Minister, Sudhir Mungantiwar to India Today. Having acknowledged that, along with the forest department, his initiative aims on planting more than 3 crore saplings across the state. These plants will not only increase the forest land, but also make communal areas like schools, hospitals, municipal parks, road sides and governmental buildings greener and cleaner.
5000 saplings alone will be planted in the city of Mumbai in Mahim Nature Park (MHP), which hosts close to 1.75 lakh visitors each year. Located opposite the Dharavi slums, the park is home to magnificent woodlands and thousands of trees. The aim of this mass plantation drive is  to increase the state’s diversity in flora and fauna, modelled on MHP. With this hope, the initiative will be planting about 450 species that include indigenous plants like Beheda, Bel, Bor, Sitaphal (custard apple), Fanas, and Gulvel, among others. Mungantiwar has even sent an invitation to the Prime Minister and other government officials to join the drive.

The state government is heavily depending on the general population as they are the primary stakeholders here. If interested, potential participants are requested to contact the deputy director of social forestry division or deputy conservator of forest of their respective districts. Registration is open to everyone till 10 am, June 30.

Feature Image Courtesy: pollutionpollution.com

Words: Karan Kaul