Selling Delhi the idea of green gifts

Annu Grover, 23, believes that the easiest way to spread awareness about environment is by making people fall in love with plants.

Annu Grover, 23, believes that the easiest way to spread awareness about environment is by making people fall in love with plants.

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So, he encourages people to gift plants to each other, be it Valentine’s Day or birthday.

He is the founder of the EYEC (Empowerment of Youth For Environment Conservation), an NGO, whose retail arm Nurturing Greens is popularising the concept of ‘Gift A Plant’.

It has two stores — in Noida and Ghaziabad — and plans to open four more by next month.

The idea is to encourage youngsters to give plants as gift.

“People tend to develop great attachment to gifts they receive on important occasions. So, they can fall in love with plants they receive as gifts ,” said Grover, who studied management at FH Joanneum University of Applied Sciences, Austria.

On Valentine’s Day, Grover set up a stall at a mall in Ghaziabad to promote the concept of Gift a Plant with the message — If hearts can go green, why cannot we? Have a Green Valentine’s Day.

Nurturing Greens sells a variety of plants such as Grasisia, Faslera, Aralia in designer jute pots, but Grover recommends a particular plant as a gift for a particular sun sign.

‘Studies have shown that every plant has a Sun Sign attached to it and bring positive energies. A Croton is the best gift for a Leo, while Dracaena is good for Libra,” said Grover.

He has entered into agreement with various corporate houses to promote plants as gifts during conferences or birthdays parties of employees.

He also promotes plants as mementos and trophies at sports events. Earlier this month, at Green GAIL Cup, Noida Golf Course, plants in jute pots, supplied by him were distributed as trophies.

The EYEC also spreads awareness about what it means to be ‘carbon- neutral individual’. It has about 250 volunteers.

The volunteers plant trees every alternate month under a project called ‘Tree Huggers’.

In December last, they planted 600 tress in Greater Noida.