Assam to plant one crore saplings on Sep 17: Himanta

Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Wednesday said one crore saplings of commercial trees will be planted within three hours on September 17 to increase the forest cover of the state. At a function here, the CM launched the web portal, mobile app and theme song of the 'Amrit Briksha Andolan' campaign.

Along with this, a website for registration of the wood-based industry was also launched on Wednesday for 'ease of doing business' in the sector.

Speaking on the occasion, Sarma said that this movement will enrich Assam's beauty, combat climate change by increasing forest cover and empower people with a tree-based economy.

On September 17, various self-help groups (SHGs), frontline workers, educational institutes and government personnel will come together to plant one crore commercially viable saplings in three hours, setting their sights on a place in the record books, he added.

''Around 40 lakh members of women SHGs from across the state will be planting two commercially-viable saplings each, taking the total to 80 lakh,'' Sarma said.

The remaining 20 lakh or more will be planted by people belonging to various walks of life such as Anganwadi workers, tea garden workers, government officials, police and forest battalions, and members of the public, he added.

''Saplings will be available at distribution centres that will be set up for the purpose. Those who register themselves with the 'Amrit Brikshya Andolan' app or portal and upload geo-tagged photographs of them planting the saplings, will be credited with an amount of Rs 100 in their bank account,'' Sarma said.

If the sapling planted on September 17 manages to survive three years, the concerned individual will be paid an additional Rs 200, he added.

The chief minister further said, ''Next year, the Government of Assam will target planting of three crore commercially viable saplings, while in 2025, the aim will be to plant five crore saplings.'' The current dispensation in the state accords top priority to a harmonious existence with the surrounding environment and raising farmers' income, he added.

''Amrit Brikshya Aandolan will facilitate an increase in income of Assam's farmers. Agro-farming elsewhere is providing a constant and remunerative source of income for farmers, but owing to a number of factors, it is yet to catch the fancy of the state's farmers,'' Sarma said.

He further said that the Assam Wood-based Industries (Promotion & Development) Rules 2022, which has replaced the Assam Wood-based Industries (Establishment & Regulation) Rules of 2000, will facilitate the growth of indigenous wood-based industries by removing the bottlenecks.

The new set of rules trifurcates the state's wood-based industries into primary, secondary and composite. License will be mandatory for operating a primary wood-based industry, while registration alone shall be sufficient to own and operate a secondary wood-based industry such as agar-wood-based industries.

The chief minister exuded confidence that initiatives such as 'Amrit Brikshya Andolan' and Wood-based Industries (Promotion & Development) Rules 2022 will aid in the preservation of the state's biodiversity, among others.

Environment and Forest Minister Chandra Mohan Patowary said that the state government is aiming to grow six crore saplings in the government nurseries from next year.

''We want the people to grow commercially viable trees in their own lands so that forests are not destroyed for wood-based industries,'' he added.

Patowary also said that commercial trees such as white sandals are being grown in government nurseries and these will be given to people for free.