Over the years there has been a constant decline of trees due to deforestation activities because of which the global warming is increasing leading the planet to an inevitable future. Without trees, life on earth is unimaginable and planting trees should be our main motive. In a record-breaking environmental drive in July 2017, 1.5 million volunteers in India planted 66 million trees in 12 hours along the Narmada river in the state of Madhya Pradesh, putting their names in the Guinness Book of World Records. This was done in accordance with the Paris Agreement to combat climate change, by increasing forests by 5 million hectares before 2030.
The campaign was organised by the Madhya Pradesh government, with 24 districts of the Narmada river basin chosen as planting sites to increase the saplings’ chances of survival. Volunteers planted more than 20 different species of trees.
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The effort bettered the state of Uttar Pradesh’s previous record-breaking feat when 800,000 volunteers planted 50 million trees in one day in July 2016.
According to Shivraj Singh Chouhan, the state’s chief minister it was a “historic day” as 1.5 million volunteers came together to plant saplings with one single goal in mind, that is to make India greener and cleaner.
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Before this, the record was held by the Indian Army. The Indian Army had set the world record by planting 4,47,874 saplings in 24 hours in an area of 200 hectares in the Srigram area of Dhubri district.
Indian Army also holds a Limca book record for planting 1 lakh saplings in just 20 minutes on World Environment day in 2015. The soldiers planted more than a lakh saplings around the Almora and Pithoragarh districts of the Kumaon region by the 130 Inf Bn (TA) Eco Kumaon, which is an Ecological battalion dedicated to protecting the ecology through afforestation.
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Looks like people all across the country are realizing the importance of planting trees. While the people in remote areas are doing their bit, we need to introspect and do our bit to preserve the Earth.
After all, there is no ‘Planet B’.