New Delhi: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma has said his government will carry out a massive drive of planting one crore saplings on a single day on September 17 for which over 50 lakh people have registered their names.
Incidentally, September 17 is also the birthday of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. There has been no official word whether the event is timed with Modi’s birthday.
“We are making all-out preparations for planting one crore saplings on a single day on September 17 and are on the verge of creating six to seven world records,” Sarma said on the sidelines of a function here on Monday, according to a release issued by the Assam government.
The chief minister said for the state government’s massive plantation drive of planting one crore saplings on a single day on September 17, more than 50 lakh people have registered their names on the application created for the same.
Earlier, Sarma lauded the initiative of an Assam-based NGO to plant one billion trees in the northeast, Bangladesh, Bhutan and Nepal. The Balipara Foundation has joined hands with Conservation International to restore one million hectares of land in the Eastern Himalayas by planting over one billion trees.
The initiative is being called ‘Great People’s Forest’.
Sarma interacted with leaders, conservationists, supporters and other
stakeholders Monday evening and extended his unstinted support to boost the green canopy.
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Terming the initiative as one of the most significant conservation efforts in the history of South Asia, the Chairman of Balipara Foundation, Ranjit Barthakur said they got inspiration from India’s hosting of the G20 Summit.
It will involve communities across northeastern India, Bangladesh, Nepal and Bhutan and work to protect and restore forests for the benefit of local livelihoods and the planet, he said, adding that the Eastern Himalayan region is of vast human, cultural and ecological significance to the planet.
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