THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: To save the trees facing the threat of extinction, the Malayinkeezhu panchayat has come up with a unique project. Project Seed Bank will collect and cultivate the rarest of rare traditional plant species. The project aims to collect seeds from the public and those interested in contributing through extensive social media campaigns.
The plan is to plant these saplings in public spaces and maintain them with the help of the agriculture department and workers of the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). It took only Rs 25,000 to set up the project. Seed Bank is expected to improve the green cover in the panchayat with trees facing extinction.
“Many trees have vanished from our local ecosystem. We will collect or procure the seeds of rare trees and bank them. After processing, tree saplings will be planted in public spaces,” said S Suresh Babu, vice-president, Malayinkeezhu panchayat.
He said the response has been overwhelming. “Since the launch, we have received around 11 types of rare seeds. Air potato, locally known as ‘Adathappu’ is a rare seed that used to be a common tree in Kerala. Many such trees vanished in the past 10 years. We aim to conserve such trees and save them for future generations. People are contacting us and offering seeds. We will continue to run this campaign via social media,” said Suresh Babu. “We have plenty of public properties in the panchayat, including schools and hospitals for planting the trees,” he added. Punnakka (tamanu tree), Ganapathy naranga (citron tree), Rudraksha tree (utrasum bean tree), Karimaram plant (Ceylon ebony) and Kaara Tree (Indian olives or wild olives) are some of the seeds collected by the panchayat.
MLA I B Satheesh said the project has been integrated into the carbon-neutral initiative in Kattakada. “Our Carbon Neutral Kattakada campaign aims at reducing carbon footprint in the constituency. The Seed Bank is a novel initiative and will help reduce carbon footprint as all these trees have high carbon absorption capacity,” he said.