Minister for Forest, Ecology & Environment, Bali Bhagat today visited Tawi Herbal Eco-Park on Bye-Pass road, Environmental Parks at Raika and Janipur areas to take stock of the facilities available there.Senior Officers of the Forest Department including, Principal Secretary Forests, Rakesh Kumar Gupta, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests, A.K. Singh, Director Environment, Ecology & Remote Sensing, O.P. Sharma, Conservator of Forests, Mr. B.M. Sharma, DFO, Jammu, Dr. Senthil Kumar accompanied the Minister,During his visit to these parks, the Minister issued instructions to the concerned to upgrade the existing facilities for the visitors and make these places more attractive so that the visitors spend more time there. He said environment parks are the lungs of the Jammu city which need to be equipped with basic amenities, relaxing and viewing spots, landscaping and plantation of composite species including herbal trees, rain shelters and public utilities. He also called for creating special recreational facilities for the school children, who visit these parks for excursions etc, but without causing any harm to the natural topography, said the Minister.
The Minister directed the officers to explore development of more such eco-friendly environmental parks in and around Jammu city to attract the large number of tourists visiting Jammu in connection with pilgrimage of Shri Mata Vaishno Devi and other revered shrines. He said there is adequate potential in the adjoining areas of Jammu city which needs to be explored for the larger interest of local people and tourists.The Director Environment briefed the Minister about the species of herbal and other plants developed in these parks and future plans about their expansion and development. It was given out that Tawi Herbal Eco-Park in Sunjwan Range (Raika) has been developed over a land of 231 hectares comprising wide range of herbal plantation, besides attractive architectural features for the people. This park would prove useful for the research students for information about different species of herbal plants. Similarly, the Environment Park has been established over 226 hectares comprising numerous wild and ornamental trees. Both these parks also serve as a lifeline to the people of Jammu as people make extensive use of these spots for morning/evening walks and picnic spots for the students.