BENGALURU: Chief Secretary P Ravi Kumar on Thursday launched the Mara Mitra (a tree’s friend) app, created by Cauvery Calling, as part of a series of initiatives being undertaken for an afforestation drive along the Cauvery basin.
The app was simultaneously launched in nine districts of Karnataka where volunteers of Cauvery Calling are working with Karnataka Forest Department and 890 Mara Mitras. “Krushi Aranya Protsaha Yojane and NREGA are schemes by the Karnataka government. Isha Foundation is tracking demand generation.
They are collecting demand data from villages. It’s not right to say that Isha is using government money to plant saplings. These are government schemes. Isha Foundation is creating awareness by educating farmers about the schemes,” the Chief Secretary said.
The app would help increase the reach for volunteers as they enrol farmers at their doorstep. The app has several dynamic features, including geo-tagging of trees, training modules, farmer enrolment process, state government schemes and several other relevant information.