BHOPAL: Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan completed two years of his daily tree plantation drive on the birth anniversary of legendary Maratha warrior king Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on Sunday.
The occasion was marked by the CM and members of his council of ministers embarking on a massive tree plantation program to develop a huge man-made forest near the Raja Bhoj Airport in Bhopal.
Addressing the occasion, the CM said that Bhopal-based Shri Ram Astha Mission will take care of Shri Ram Van, the huge man-made forest near the Bhopal Airport. A total of 1.40 lakh trees of 120 species will be planted there.
While recounting the daily tree plantation drive started by him on February 19, 2021 from Amarkantak (Anuppur district) – the origin of river Narmada – the CM said that in the last two years, not a single day has passed when saplings weren’t planted.
Even during the Corona period, he planted saplings daily while taking all due precautions. He informed about having planted trees not only in MP but also in 12 other states as part of his resolve to plant saplings daily.
The work of planting saplings at many places in the state has been done with public cooperation. Apart from Smart Udyan in Bhopal, the guests of the Pravasi Bharatiya Sammelan and representatives of the G-20 countries also planted saplings in the Global Garden of Indore.
CM unveils grand statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj on the Maratha warrior king’s Jayanti in Kamal Nath’s bastion Chhindwara:
The MP CM marked the Chhatrapati Shivaji Jayanti by unveiling a grand statue of the legendary Maratha warrior king at the Sausar area of Chhindwara district. He also unveiled and laid the foundation stone of development works worth Rs 122 crore.
Importantly, while Chhindwara district has over four decades been the pocket-borough of ex-CM and state Congress Kamal Nath, the Sausar area there, which also houses Nath’s village, was in the centre of controversy in February 2020 (while Nath was the state’s CM) over the removal of Chhatrapati Shivaji’s bust that was put at Mohgaon Tiraha (Sausar) by right-wing Hindu outfits, including Shiv Sena.
The bust put at the busy road tri-square by the Hindu outfits was removed with a JCB machine in February 2020 by the local administration, as the Hindu right-wingers had put the bust there without the permission of authorities.
Chouhan had subsequently led a massive protest in the same town against the removal of the bust.
Recounting the three years old incidents at the function on Sunday, Chouhan said “the statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj in Sausar was removed by running a bulldozer during the regime of the previous government. Chhatrapati was grossly insulted, it hurt the sentiments of all our countrymen. That's why we decided that a big statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj would be installed here and he would be given full respect. The youth will be inspired by his patriotic stories. Chhatrapati Shivaji is our idol.”
Responding to Chouhan’s statements on the February 2020 issue, the Congress MLA from Sausar seat, Vijay Chaure said, “The MP CM is taking false credit for the statue of the Hindu Hriday Samrat Chhatrapati Shivaji. The local administration had attempted to remove the bust in February 2020, as it was without any permission. Just a few days later, then CM Kamal Nath and his local MP son had got decks cleared for installing a grander statue of Chhatrapati Shivaji. Now the present CM is trying to take false credit for unveiling a new statue. The same officials who attempted the removal of Shivaji’s bust in February 2020 are now welcoming the present CM, why hasn’t he acted against them over the last three years?”