It seems the environment, its problems and the need for its conservation are weighing rather heavily on people’s minds. This was reflected in the slew of activities around the city organised by various organisations to mark the World Environment Day (WED) on Wednesday.
The Social Forestry Wing of the Kerala Forest and Wildlife Department, for starters, launched this year’s edition of ‘Haritha Keralam’ - a state government initiative to increase the green cover, and conserve the biodiversity and ecology of the State. The state-level launch was held at Sarvodaya Vidyalaya, Nalanchira, with Chief Minister Oommen Chandy inaugurating the project.
Apart from the ‘Ente Maram’ scheme, where school students are given saplings to be planted in their homes, this year the social forestry wing is tying up various ‘Green Partners’ - organisations like the Indian Army, State Biodiversity Board, National Cadet Corps etc - so that their strength can be utilised for greening and engaging citizens.
The Institute of Land and Disaster Management (ILDM) also observed WED by organising a one-day seminar, which Revenue Minister Adoor Prakash inaugurated. The Pollution Control Board marked the day by giving away its Pollution Control Awards at a function inaugurated by the Chief Minister.
Schools also joined in the WED observance with gusto. The students of Government Model Boys HSS, Thycaud, for one, led a rally around their school neighbourhood carrying banners announcing this year’s theme - Think. Eat. Save. For another, Christ Nagar HSS, Kowdiar, clubbed its school-reopening celebrations with that of WED, distributing saplings to the 2,500 students of the school.
Tree-planting drives were another feature of the day. All the celebrations saw a tree sapling being planted as a symbolic gesture. The Centre for Development of Advanced Computing (C-DAC), in association with Sahyadri Natural History Society, marked the day by planting 101 tree saplings on its premises.
Another massive tree-planting drive was the Neyyar Haritha Theeram project - a joint initiative of AMAS Neyyatinkara, WWF-India, Kerala Forests & Wildlife Department, National Service Scheme and several grama panchayats along the Neyyar from Kallikkad to Poovar. Here, 10,000 bamboo seedlings were planted on either side of the river to protect and restore the river banks. This, the organisers said, was a “bottom-to-up project initiated by the local grama panchayat representatives and people.”
Follow-up activities will include an evaluation walk along the entire bank after two months to check the mortality. Around 3,000 seedlings have been set aside by the Forest Department for replanting wherever necessary.