CHANDIGARH:The Chief Minister Captain Amarinder Singh would inaugurate 69th State Level Van Mahotsav by planting a sapling at Nabha on July 28.
Disclosing this here today, Forests Minister Sadhu Singh Dharamsot said that the sole motive of organizing Van Mahotsav is to motivate people towards maximum plantation of saplings. He said that Punjab Government had chalked out a detailed plan to cover 10,000 acres land by planting saplings in current year under ‘Ghar Ghar Haryali’ campaign more than 15 Lakh saplings have been planted till date by Government, non Government organizations, farmers and residents of Punjab at different places.
Giving details of activities being run by Forest Department under ‘Mission Tandarust Punjab’, the Minister said that Department had decided to identify the slum and backward areas for enhancing green cover over there. He said that under this initiative a special drive would be started for planting of 50,000 saplings in these particular areas. He said that around 2.70 lakh residents of Punjab had download ‘i-Haryali’ app in their android phones and 8 lakh saplings had been provided till date through this app. The Minister informed that an ‘IOS App’ for the people having i-phones would also be launched soon so that they could also book the saplings of their choice by downloading i-haryali app.
Expressing satisfaction over the report of Forest Survey of India-2017, the Minister said that this report had registered an increase of 35,583 acres of tree cover in forests. The Forest Department would also start a mass movement to motivate people for planting of saplings through awareness camps, which would be organized across the state besides urging the social, religious, eco and youth clubs and other Government Organizations to come forward for this noble cause.
