Students asked to collect seeds for plantation of indigenous saplings

GARAM CHASHMA: At two events held in a private school and at the Govt Higher Secondary School Garam Chashma, students were asked to actively take party in planting indigenous saplings in their areas.

The students on the occasion also pledged not to use junk food of any kind from the bazaar.

Speakers on the occasion stressed the need to create civic sense and responsibility among children by their parents and teachers.

The chairman of CHEPS, a civil society organization, told ChitralToday he had launched a programme back in 2005 to create awareness among the people of Chitral to avoid using plastic bags and go for bags made of cloth and paper in their homes. But the people of Chitral did not take it seriously.

However, 14 years later, the PTI government has started banning the use of plastic bags and making it mandatory to use bags of cloth for shopping etc.

He said his environment awareness campaign also stressed, especially among the youth, to plant indigenous saplings in Chitral as plants being introduced in the valley under the billion tree tsunami programme of the PTI government were alien to the area and would damage environment.

He said he was taking a pledge from students to collect seeds of different plants such as walnut, apricot etc., and establish nurseries on the premises of their schools and houses by the autumn so that they can be planted in different areas in the spring.

He said at the two programmes in Garam Chashma and Mogh, people were also told to create a sense of responsibility among their children regarding maintaining a clean environment even in their homes.

Children should be told to make their rooms as well as bathroom clean so that the sense of responsibility could start form the beginning.

He said students could play a very crucial role in making the tree plantation drive a big success by not only planting new saplings but also taking care of the old as well as new plants.