Rourkela: Rourkela Steel Plant Friday launched a drive to plant 1.8 lakh saplings in the current year as part of a Mass Environmental Awareness and Tree Plantation Festival at Sector-6 near the Ispat stadium.
Steel plant CEO Ashwini Kumar inaugurated the programme by planting a sapling. Claiming that RSP has planted 47 lakh trees in and around Rourkela and created a girdle of greenness in the region, Kumar said RSP will plant 35,000 saplings in the Steel Township and inside the plant. Another 53,000 saplings will be planted in periphery areas like Panposh, Kuarmunda, Biramitrapur, Banki, Bisra and Rajgangpur forest range. One lakh saplings will be distributed freely in Bisra, Kuarmunda, Nuagaon and Rajgangpur blocks. The plantation and distribution of saplings will be carried out in association with the state forest department.
Deepika Mahila Sanghati president Savita Kumari, PK Pradhan, ED (P&A), Rajiv Agarwal, ED (Projects), DMS vice-presidents Minkashi Pradhan and Rekha Agarwal, GM incharge (Services & Utilities) Gautam Banerjee, GM (TA) NK Samantary, Dr S S Pati, director (M&HS), P Murli, GM (HSM) and many senior officers of the plant who were present on the occasion planted saplings.
About 500 students drawn from Ispat English Medium Schools of Sector 20, Sector 22, Deepika Ispat Sikshya Sadan, Delhi Public School, Gyanjyoti School, Saraswati Shishu Vidya Mandir, Sector-6, NAC High School, Sector-6, Desouza School, Kendriya Vidyalaya, Sector-6 and Deepika English Medium School planted a variety of saplings at Ispat Vriksha Udyan.
The inaugural song of the programme was rendered by students of Ispat English Medium School, Sector-22.
PNN