BENGALURU: There have been many instances of children being roped in for plantation drives and watering of plants. But here is a case of students of Bhattarahalli Government Primary School turning into long-term caretakers of plants. These students, aged between six and ten, have adopted two saplings each. They bring water in bottles from their home and water the adopted saplings, on the initiative of members of Citizens for KR Puram, which comprises resident welfare groups, morning walkers group and active citizens.
Balaji Raghotam Bali of the organisation said that unlike earlier where such work was a one-time affair, these children will water saplings regularly around Bhatrahalli Lake, which is opposite their school. “Around 900 saplings have been planted on the 21-acre lake land by citizens and activists. The students will not be alone. Parents, elders and other walkers will also be part of the drive,” he said.
The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) school has 90 students and all of them started the campaign from Saturday. The students will be accompanied by teachers.Vasantha Kumari, a teacher at the school, said the children normally watered saplings inside the school compound and for the first time, they will go to the lake and water the plants.Bali said planting of saplings in government lakes and watering them started in 2019 and every year one such government school is roped in.