On Forest Day, CM Yogi Adityanath stressed on the importance of forests, plantation drives, dolphin conservation and green energy schemes. The aim is to balance environment and development through increasing forest cover in UP, Ramsar sites and eco-tourism.
Lucknow. On the occasion of International Forest Day, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath gave detailed views on environmental protection and importance of forests in the inaugural ceremony of the National Forestry Dialogue organized at Indira Gandhi Pratishthan, Lucknow. During this, he released a coffee table book, honored various people and also visited the exhibition of the Forest Department.
Increasing importance of forests amid climate change and environmental crisis
The Chief Minister said that today the whole world is facing serious challenges like climate change, global warming and environmental imbalance. In such times, the importance of forests has increased more than ever. Referring to the Indian Vedic tradition, he said that our sages have given the highest place to nature. The message of “Mata Bhoomi: Putroham Prithivya” inspires us to consider the earth as our mother and protect it.
‘Forest and Economics’ Theme: Balancing Environment and Development
CM Yogi said that this year the theme of International Forest Day has been kept as ‘Forest and Economics’, which shows that we have to make a balanced strategy for economic development and human welfare along with conservation of forests. Referring to the verse “Dashkoopasama Vapi…” he said that the importance of a tree is very great and it plays an important role in maintaining the balance of nature.
Forest cover increased due to public movement, record of planting crores of trees
The Chief Minister said that in the last 9 years, there has been great success in increasing forest cover in Uttar Pradesh.
- 242 crore saplings were planted
- Forest cover reached about 10%
- Target to increase to 16-17%
He said that success is achieved only when the campaign becomes a mass movement.
Increase in Ramsar sites, promotion of water conservation and tourism
CM Yogi said that in the year 2017, there was only 1 Ramsar site in the state, which has now increased to 11. The aim is to take it to 100. Ramsar sites are extremely important for water conservation, wildlife conservation and tourism. This also keeps the land safe from land mafias.
River revitalization and large scale plantation campaign
Plantation is being done on a large scale along the banks of rivers Ganga, Yamuna and Saryu. Suitable saplings have also been planted on both sides of expressways and highways. A river revitalization campaign has also been launched in every district.
Promotion of eco-tourism and green economy
The Chief Minister said that eco-tourism has been promoted in Dudhwa National Park and connectivity has been improved. 2,467 forest based green economy model industries have been established in the state. He said that conservation of tigers is our responsibility and human-wildlife conflict has been categorized as a disaster.
Big success in dolphin conservation, numbers increased
CM Yogi said that after the Namami Gange project, there has been a huge increase in the number of Gangetic Dolphins.
- Earlier there were only 23 dolphins
- Now there are 6,327 dolphins in the country
- Of these, 2,397 are in Uttar Pradesh alone
Jatayu Conservation Center has also been established in Gorakhpur.
Increase in budget and schemes for forest conservation
Government has increased the budget for forest and environment sector:
- Rs 800 crore for social forestry
- 220 crores for cow shelter management
- Rs 10 crore for forest modernization
- 50 crore corpus fund for Ranipur Tiger Reserve
- Rs 194 crore for clean air management
Focus on solar, electric vehicle and green energy
The Chief Minister said that several steps are being taken to achieve carbon net zero target in the state:
- Electric vehicle policy implemented
- Metro operation in 7 cities
- 700+ electric buses
- Ayodhya is being developed as a solar city
Under the PM Surya Ghar Free Electricity Scheme, 4 lakh rooftop solar has been installed, which has generated more than 1400 MW power generation capacity. A target has been set to develop 22,000 MW of renewable energy in the coming 5 years.
Emphasis on heritage trees and public participation
The Chief Minister said that 100 year old trees have been declared heritage trees and special attention is being given to their conservation. He said that the coffee table book should be distributed to as many institutions as possible and communication with farmers regarding carbon credit should be increased.
Many public representatives and officials were present in the program
On this occasion, Forest and Environment Minister Dr. Arun Kumar Saxena, Minister of State KP Malik, Principal Secretary V Hekali Jhimomi, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Sunil Chaudhary, Anuradha Vemuri and many officials and public representatives were present.