The Odisha Agriculture Department has rolled out a large-scale fruit sapling plantation drive in which they plant over 2.3 million saplings in the state. The planting drive has been launched under the campaign “EK Ped Maa Ke Naam”. Notably, this initiative intends to improve the vegetative cover by planting the fruit saplings and encourage environmental sustainability and tribute mothers by encouraging citizens to plant trees in their memory.
More than 1,500 fruit saplings have been planted in the plantation drive
The Plantation drive began at Deras Horticulture Farm in Bhubneshwar with the inauguration by Dr Arabinda Kumar Padhee, Principal Secretary of the Department of Agriculture and Farmers’ Empowerment. More than 1,500 fruit saplings, including Jamun, Lychee, and coconut, were planted at the farm as part of the campaign. The event witnessed widespread community participation, in which trainees from the Horticulture Excellence Centre, staff from the farm and the contribution of departmental authorities.
Not only this, but the department distributed free saplings of mango, Kagzi lemon, banana, jackfruit and other fruit varieties to the stakeholders in the state.
Odisha agriculture department organised an awareness program too
Apart from this fruit saplings plantation drive, the Odisha Agriculture Department also organised awareness programs to educate participants regarding the proper care and maintenance of saplings to ensure growth over the next three years. With these efforts, authorities have been assigned to check the progress by uploading data and photographs of plantations to the MeriLiFE Portal. Interestingly, women and elderly citizens also actively participated in the fruit saplings plantation drive. They pledged to tribute to Mother Earth. The drive was further graced by the presence of Horticulture Director Kalunge Gorakh Waman, Soil Conservation and Watershed Management Director Subrat Kumar Panda, and other senior officials who joined the sapling planting activity in the event.