Furthering the pro-environmental approach behind the traditional Indian festival of Van Mahotsav, Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan, headed and founded by Divya Guru Shri Ashutosh Maharaj Ji sets out to install the world’s best nature–made technology i.e., trees to restore the ecosystem health. Under the banner of its Nature Conservation Program – Sanrakshan, DJJS on the auspicious occasion of Guru Purnima 2023, flagged off its annual all- India campaign- THE GREEN DRIVE.
The campaign aimed at reiterating the importance of tree plantation and encouraging masses to maintain and create green spaces in the urban landscape. As a part of this campaign, DJJS planted and distributed thousands of saplings of medicinal and air purifying local varieties of plants across the country through its Pan-India network of branches during the monsoon season i.e., from July to September. DJJS centres based in Aligarh, Bareilly, Gorakhpur, Meerut & Agra in Uttar Pradesh; Ahmedabad & Vadodra in Gujarat; Chakan and Nagpur in Maharashtra; Sirsa, Haryana; Bhatinda, Patiala & Nurmahal in Punjab; Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand; Chennai, Tamil Nadu and Jodhpur, Rajasthan set up numerous sapling distribution booths in different parts of the area to sensitise and distribute saplings to the residents.
As lungs are to humans so are forests to our planet earth. Forests are called the ‘Lungs of the Earth’, for they are factories which consume carbon dioxide and in turn give oxygen. However, today these nature-made units stand threatened owing to rapid change in land- use patterns. Studies reveal that everyday a forest patch equivalent to the size of football field is cut down from the tropical forests. The consequences of this loss are already seen in rising threat of climate change and threatened species. In the urban environments the impact is much more serious owing to rising vehicular pollution.
Today, restoring the health of the planet has become an urgent need. Tree plantation is the best nature- given technology to restore the health of the planet. However, tree plantation is not just sowing a sapling in the soil, it beholds profound ecosystem science behind it. The kind of varieties chosen, time, place and way they are planted are the most significant things to take care of while tree plantation. Further, enriching the soil, after care of the sapling stand equally important to ensure the growth and sustainability of the plant.
Indian traditional tree festival Van Mahotsav has kept this science alive for centuries now, however as modern generations distance from the Indian culture, this profound science of tree plantation and management of ecosystem health is being gradually lost.
Bearing the aforesaid in mind, DJJS Nature Conservation Program- Sanrakshan started celebrating the Indian tree plantation festival- Van Mahotsav annually during the months of July to September about a decade ago. Aligning the celebration with Guru Purnima, DJJS undertakes rigorous sensitisation and engagement activities to restore the ecosystem as well as strengthen the human-nature bond. Till date Sanrakshan has hosted thousands of sapling distribution and awareness generation activities and distributed hundreds of thousands of plants in various parts of Punjab, Haryana, Maharashtra, Delhi NCR, Madhya Pradesh, Orissa, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar, Uttar Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka etc. To sustain the practice of plantation, DJJS Sanrakshan works on partnering with corporates, residential welfare associations, schools and railway stations.
