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Expanding Pune: Meet the Green Hills Group who is bringing back Wagholi’s green cover, one tree at a time
The group currently has a panel of eight trustees comprising devoted and passionate nature lovers. Some of the group member are retired persons from different backgrounds like bankers , engineers and businessman while some are youngsters who are still at college and working professionals.
Green Hills Group in Wagholi has been actively working for the last one decade in the domain of rainwater harvesting and tree plantation in Pune. It worked as a small group for five to six years and then registered as a trust called Green Hills Group. The group currently has a panel of eight trustees comprising devoted and passionate nature lovers. Some of the group member are retired persons from different backgrounds like bankers , engineers and businessman while some are youngsters who are still at college and working professionals.
Each of them carries a dream and has a mission of converting the Wagholi hills into a hotspot of rich biodiversity. Their efforts has yielded success under the guidance of Indian Forest Service (IFS) deputy conservator of forest, (Pune) Ranganath Naikade and plantation expert Kisan Gargote.
The group has embarked on the ambitious task of transforming the 40 acre barren hill located behind Ivy Estate into a dense urban forest and the results are there before everybody to see.The group has successfully converted 20 acres of hill terrain into a green thumb through massive public awareness campaign on plantation and mass tree plantation with technical expertise to ensure high plant survival rate.
“We used to go to the hill to witness sunrise every morning almost for a year alone.Then with the help of few nature enthusiasts, we have formed a group called Green Sunrise Hill Group in May 2016 and named this hill as Green Sunrise Hill. We have taken initiative in May 2016 and formed the group to start plantation activity on the nearby hill,” said Green Hills Group founder Chandrakant Naktode. The group aims to plant and nurture 25,000 plants on hill by 2022.
Wagholi facts
Succeeded in commissioning a permanent water supply system on hill.
Planted 2,000 trees
Dug 30,000 litre capacity pond through self-labour (shramdan)
Dig trenches for rainwater harvesting through self labour.
Encourage people participation from nearby societies and the group strength is around 500 people.
Around 600 students from BJS Wagholi help in the various initiatives
Now the project has become a mass movement and succeed to create plantation awareness in the residents of Wagholi.
