As society is progressing, environmental issues are also progressing along, highlighting the unsustainability of our chosen path to development. Aiming to generate awareness and mobilize individual action for building a clean and green Ludhiana, under the banner of Sanrakshan, DJJS Ludhiana organised Green Walkathon on 27th March 2023 starting at 10 am from Shri Ram Leela ground, Daresi. With the slogan, ‘Prakriti nahi to Pragati nahi’, the walkathon reiterated the fact that any development that comes at the cost of the environment is short-lived.
Children gave the walkathon a holy start with Vedic chants. Highlighting the current state and importance of our planet, DJJS Sanrakshan’s nature conservators performed an enthralling street play, ‘Ye Dharti’. Divya Guru Shri Ashutosh Maharaj Ji’s ascetic disciple, Swami Gurukripanand Ji said that nature which has provided us the foundation for our comfortable lifestyle, and material and economic progress, is now being exploited by us. This is a result of man's egocentric and uncontrolled actions arising from the belief that nature and its resources are at our disposal. If the natural resources continue to deplete at the current rate, our entire progress will come to a halt. Nature, a union of five elements: water, air, soil, fire, and sky, nurtures us as a mother, hence, as children, we must also respect it. If Nature is secure and conserved so shall our life be. Divya Jyoti Jagrati Sansthan through its Nature Conservation initiative, Sanrakshan, is working at reminding people of the interconnectedness of humans with nature. Through this walkathon, DJJS Sanrakshan appealed to all Ludhiana residents to become aware of their duties towards Mother Nature.
The rally was flagged off by Shri Ashok Kumar Parashar (MLA), Shri Shyam Sundar Malhotra (Senior Deputy Mayor, Municipal Corporation, Ludhiana), Shri Kamal Chatly (Vice President Akali Dal Punjab), Shri Rajneesh Dheeman (President BJP, Ludhiana), Shri Dinesh Sarpal (President, Business Cell BJP, Punjab), Swami Giridharanand Ji, Swami Satmitranand Ji, Swami Prakashanand Ji, and Swami Maneshwanand Ji.
About 3000 participants of varied age groups, dressed thematically to highlight current and future scenarios of each environmental ailment i.e., state of air quality; water pollution and scarcity; plastic pollution, and choked waterways like Buddha Nullah. Via a model of a ‘Dying Earth’ and other thought-provoking models, children reiterated the message of the Green Walkathon slogan. Young brother volunteers furthered this with slogans to inspire a clean and green Ludhiana, while the sister volunteers conveyed the importance of water conservation and the 3Rs. Beginning and ending at Daresi Ground, the walkathon marched through all important roads of the city, Shri Ved Mandir Chowk, Circular Road, Bajwa Nagar, Bhagwan Valmiki Ghati, Pracheen Gaushala, Chaura Bazar. The onlookers were enthused and seemed encouraged, and the rally was showered with flowers as they passed by. All the esteemed guests and thousands of participants pledged to keep the city clean, conserve water, and plant as many trees as possible.
For years, Sanrakshan has been working for Ludhiana’s environmental health and steering masses towards being environmentally responsible. Under the guidance of Divya Guru Shri Ashutosh Maharaj Ji, Sanrakshan has been advocating for a greener future by rebuilding the fading human-nature relationship. For more information, visit www.djjs.org/sanrakshan and FOLLOW @djjssanrakshan on Instagram.
