Plantation Drives Need
Standard and Truthful Follow Up: Prof. Sidhu
Vinay Kumar Sharma
Chandigarh
While celebrating the
third birthday of ‘Amaltas’ tree, Prof. Malkiat Chand Sidhu, Department of
Botany, Panjab University, Chandigarh, emphasized on the post-planting care of
trees. According to him, tree plantation drives have been conducted every year
under the aegis of ‘Van Mahostav’ since 1950. It is a week-long festival of
tree plantation generally organized during the first week of July. The basic
purpose of this ‘Tree Festival’ is to make people aware about the significance,
utilization, protection and conservation strategies of plants. It is immensely
important as plants provide food, fodder, fuel, fiber, timber and medicines.
Most noteworthy, plants oxygenate the life forms including the human beings.
The Government and other organizations used to provide free saplings for
plantation. Educational institutions, NGOs and general public usually
participate in plantation activities. Therefore, need of the hour is not only
to carry on the plantation of millions of tree every year but to take care of
them more judiciously on regular basis. It will definitely increase the
survival rate of the saplings. It will decrease the pollution level and make
the environment clean, green, healthy and aesthetic. Subsequently it will help
in the conservation of biological diversity, said Prof. Sidhu. He further
stressed upon to popularize the tree adoption plan. It should be the
responsibility of the person to look after the maintenance of the concerned
sapling. At school level, each student should be encouraged to plant at least
one sapling in the school or at home or in the vicinity. Any growing tree has
to face different types of stresses like heat, cold, flood, insects and
diseases. Thus continuous observation and management approaches have to put in
place. Prof. Sidhu is of the opinion that human population is continuously
increasing. The current global human population is 7.8 billion including 1.38
billion of India. This increasing population needs more houses, educational
institutes, hospitals, industries, widening of roads etc. All these practices
are consuming arable land and sometimes even forest area has to be cleared.
Ever increasing population, decrease in arable land and cutting of trees are
increasing the pollution level as well. To save the human and other life forms,
protection of the plants/trees is most essential. Since trees support various
biological activities necessary for the survival of life, it is our duty to
conserve them and use in a sustainable manner.
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