BHUBANESWAR: Unmukt Foundation brought a group of fifteen volunteers of citizens to join a massive plantation drive ‘The Green Army’ organised by City Divisional Forest Office at Khandagiri Square here Saturday.
It was a citizens’ initiative to supplement Government efforts at restoring normalcy after extremely severe cyclonic storm ‘Fani’ hit the capital May 03. The team worked with Forest Department officials and workers.
In the morning, forest workers led by Ashok Kumar Mishra, DFO, Gobinda Chandra Biswal, ACFO, and Dhyaan Tudu, forester, began the drive from Khandagiri Square along Jagamara till City Women’s College restoring more than 100 trees and plants which had been damaged badly by the cyclone.
According to estimates, the cyclone decimated more than a million trees in Bhubaneswar. Many of these trees were along the road and on the medians. These need immediate attention to help them survive as they might be cut by locals due to hindrance to road, electricity restoration or traffic.
The city DFO has undertaken to restore these trees but is facing a severe crunch of manpower. Unmukt Foundation has started working with the DFO to get citizens involved in the restoration work. More than 15 volunteers from different corners of the city joined the activity and were encouraged by the forest department workers and officials along with senior landscape architect of Bhubaneswar Smart City Ar. Swayam Mohanty.
Volunteers from Navodaya Alumni Association of Odisha also contributed during the drive. Volunteers and workers, including five female volunteers, disregarded searing heat and dedicated themselves to the restoration work. Citizens were seen with crowbars, spades and pickaxes helping the restoration. That prompted many locals to join in and contribute with advice and encouragement.
Shweta Agarwal, founder, Unmukt, said that this is an ongoing drive and will continue till Bhubaneswar is greener than before Cyclone Fani hit the city. This is phase one of the drive where restoration of plants is being done. Phase two of the drive will be replantation of trees across the city. Sourav Pattnaik, leading this drive from Unmukt Foundation, urged everyone to contribute and get more volunteers to the cause.
Unmukt urges everyone to contribute to the cause and spread the message so that more and more volunteers can join the drive and help make Bhubaneswar green again.