Governor Shiv Pratap Shukla was present as the Chief Guest in the Plantation Drive organized under the joint aegis of Himachal Pradesh State Red Cross Society and Forest Department at Glen near Annandale, Shimla today. He planted a sapling of deodar and gave a message of forest conservation. Under the campaign, 250 saplings were planted and Junior Red Cross volunteers of Government Senior Secondary School Annandale also participated in the campaign.
"We all need to be aware of environment conservation and through such plantation drives, we can conserve our environment by increasing the green cover," said the Governor on the occasion. We must plant saplings but we should also protect them. He added that incidents of natural disasters have increased in the State in the last two years and all this was a result of tampering with nature.
He added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has started the campaign "Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam" with an aim of planting 80 crore trees by September 2024 and 1.4 billion trees by March 2025. This requires collective efforts of the government and society, stated Sh. Shukla, adding: "I would like every person to be a part of this campaign and plant at least one sapling. Such schemes inspire the society."
The Governor said that the state government has also allocated a budget of Rs. 150 crore to the forest department for plantation under the Environment Conservation Scheme. The purpose of this allocation was to expand the green cover in the State and encourage environmental conservation.
This year the Forest Department has set a target of planting trees on nine thousand hectares of land in the State, he added.Secretary to the Governor Rajesh Sharma, officials of the District Administration and Forest Department, and volunteers of the State Red Cross were also present on the occasion.