Minister for Forest, Environment and Ecology, Choudhary Lal Singh today asked the officers of the department to gear up for the upcoming massive plantation drive across Kashmir region.The Minister directed officers to start a massive plantation drive and set a target of planting recorded breaking saplings in the forest areas and alongside the roads during the season.The Minister issued these directions while chairing a meeting of officers of Forest department and its allied wings at his office in Civil Secretariat in Srinagar.Principal Chief Conservator of Forests A K Singh, Commissioner/Secretary Forest, Ecology and Environment, Muhammad Afzal Bhat, Managing Director, State Forest Corporation, Suresh Gupta, Director, Social Forestry, Arun Tikoo, B.M Sharma Director, SFRI, Sameer Bhat Member Secretary PCB, Chief Conservator Forest, Kashmir, Nissar Ahmad Darzi, Miar Javaid CEO, WUCMA attended the meeting.The Minister asked officers to put in concerted efforts and mobilize the available resources for taking up plantation drive across Kashmir region.
He asked them to immediately start plantation drive in degraded forest areas of their respective jurisdictions. He stressed on turning summer capital Srinagar green.Mr Singh directed for achieving targets of plantation during the upcoming season, especially on degraded and uncovered forest land on priority. He stressed that work, in this regard, should be visible on ground and directed for third party monitoring and inspection to ascertain the progress on the project.Maintaining that public participation is vital for preservation of environment, the Minister urged upon people to come forward and voluntarily participate in the plantation drive. He said people should plant trees in their surroundings, schools, colleges and Government offices, saying that the department will provide saplings free of cost during the rainy season.He asked the concerned for taking up works of up-gradation of existing nurseries under CAMPA scheme 2016.