Environmentalist roots for flowering trees

BID TO BEAUTIFY Urges corporate houses, experts, and NRIs to join campaign to plant flowering in addition to traditional tree saplings

CHANDIGARH: Sirsa-based environmentalist Gurvinder Singh Ghuman has called upon corporate houses, social organisations, forestry experts, conservationists and government representatives to be part of a campaign for planting flowering trees across the country.

Panjab University, Chandigarh, amid the colours of spring. Environmentalist Gurvinder Singh Ghuman has proposed celebrating Flowering Tree Day on August 5 and urged people to come together and plant flowering trees towards making the country beautiful. (Anil Dayal/HT file)

In a release here on Tuesday, Ghuman said, “Most of us go for traditional saplings of neem and peepal that result in green foliage only, while my idea under the Beautiful India, Colourful India initiative is to promote the planting of flowering, herbal, ornamental trees besides fine-looking shrubs in addition to traditional trees.”

He invited non-resident Indians to donate seeds and plants to their native villages and be a part of the movement to beautify the landscape by planting flowering trees.

He started the initiative in 2018 in Sirsa and planted 167 flowering trees with the help of local leaders, administrators, students and teachers besides volunteers. “We planted trees in and around Sirsa, including hospitals, government schools, parks, police stations, and public places. It’s a success but to buy the saplings from nurseries at one’s own expense restricts us from taking the initiative to a large scale. Buying seeds is a cost-effective way to carry forward this initiative that relies on only government-approved tree varieties,” he said.

Sirsa-based environmentalist Gurvinder Singh Ghuman. (HT Photo)

Last year, Ghuman bought 72 varieties of seeds, totalling 1.25 lakh seeds. Of these, he made 1,000 kits and distributed 500 in Haryana, 300 in Punjab, and the rest to private and government schools, shrines, and agricultural universities. “I want to involve seed sellers and nurseries and share information about the optimal sowing and replant time besides details about the size and height of the trees to ensure they are planted optimally,” he said.

He proposed celebrating Flowering Tree Day on August 5 every year and urged people to come together and plant flowering trees towards making the country beautiful.