By Our Staff Reporter
Dehradun, 16 Jul: Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami planted a tree at MDDA City Park near Sahastradhara Helipad on the occasion of Harela, a folk festival of Uttarakhand. Speaking on the occasion, the CM observed that Harela, was a festival aimed at ensuring prosperity, greenery and environmental protection. This festival was a symbol of the rich cultural heritage and traditions of Uttarakhand. He said that environmental protection was the collective responsibility of all the people. Tree plantation drives ought not to be limited to government functions only. People ought to be made aware of the need for plantation to make it a mass campaign. The Chief Minister said that special attention was required to be paid to protecting the trees after the plantation.
Dhami urged the people not to give flower bouquets to him while meeting him but instead offer a plant. He called for taking a pledge on the occasion of Harela to plant trees on a large scale in the state. He said that many commendable efforts were made by the ancestors for the conservation and promotion of nature. The government and the people would have to make continuous efforts in this direction so that the future generation would inherit a green Uttarakhand. Expressing concern over drying up of water sources, the Chief Minister said that efforts would have to be made towards their rejuvenation.
Dhami said that Uttarakhand was a centre of culture and nature. The message of environmental protection from the soil of Uttarakhand ought to reach out to every part of the world. Every resident of Uttarakhand ought to contribute by planting trees and engaging in various social activities. Environment Minister Harak Singh Rawat said that efforts were being made by the government to create an optimum balance between the environment and development. It was the responsibility of everyone to ensure a balanced development of Uttarakhand. He said that some work ought to be also done for self-satisfaction. The consequences of tampering with nature were there in front of everyone today. Nature had a tendency to take revenge in many forms.
Present on this occasion were Additional Chief Secretary Anand Vardhan, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Rajiv Bhartari, Additional Chief Conservator of Forests Jyotsna Sithling, DGK Sharma, District Magistrate, Dehradun, Dr Ashish Srivastava, Vice President, MDDA, Ranveer Singh Chouhan and other senior officials.
