Telangana has massive plans to go green
Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is pursuing a phenomenal push to give the state a green cover. For the third year in a row, he has been chasing the elusive goal of Telangana Ku Haritha Haram (TKHH) or Green Garland for Telangana, which aims to increase the green cover from 24 per cent to 33 per cent of the state's area of 112.10 lakh hectares.
Beginning July 12, with the chief minister taking the lead in Karimnagar, government employees, students, and other activists are fanning across the state. A total of 42 crore seedlings are being handed out for planting as against the target of 40 crore. The targets were 30 crore last year and 15 crore in the first year of TKHH.
Despite planting remaining short of the target during the previous two phases and less than half of what was planted having survived, officials are hopeful of reaching the larger ambitious target this time. There are exclusive concerted drives to ensure effective planting like getting school goers to plant 50 lakh saplings on a single day - July 15 - under what is billed as the Haritha School programme.
"We will introduce lessons on tree plantation in textbooks from the next academic year," says enthusiastic deputy chief minister (education) K Srihari. In another initiative, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation is to plant one crore saplings over the next three months.
KCR is showing remarkable pragmatism by making TKHH a staggered five-year programme rather than a ritual during the annual vanamahotsav week celebration conducted by the forest departments in the state. Planting of silver date palm 'eetha' saplings is assuming additional importance.
He wanted five crore silver date palm saplings to be planted so that healthy arrack, instead of adulterated toddy, becomes accessible to villagers in the coming years. About 2.5 crore date palm saplings are being handed out this year as the planting was just 50 lakh palms way short of the intended target in the two earlier phases.
TKHH is being scaled up with each phase and challenges have spawned innovation. Seed bombing is one this time round, whereby soil balls with seed inside, lakhs of them, are to be lobbed for dispersal on barren hills. The afforestation of barren hills, an integral element of TKHH, has remained a non-starter because of the problems posed by the mission.
"It involves dropping of the balls in rocky crevices so that the seeds will safely take root. It has been carried out successfully earlier in Karnataka," said the state's principal chief conservator of forests, PK Jha.
The total amount spent on planting by the TKHH programme so far is Rs 1,755.06 crore and more is expected in the remaining two years.
Focusing on survival rate of saplings and accountability, the CM has called for the formation of Green Brigades across the state to nurture the saplings, set up tree guards and water the plants when there are no rains.
"We have to impress everyone by enlisting volunteers that protecting trees is as important as planting saplings," said KCR. While the green cover gains ground, albeit slowly, the state is sore that it has received little assistance from the Centre despite repeated requests.
Forest and environment minister Jogu Ramanna said the state is due about Rs 1,100 crore under the National Green Highway Development Programme, "but not a single rupee has been sanctioned so far."
(Courtesy of Mail Today.)