Pune: a group of nature lover Pune has proved ‘Where there is a will, there is a way’ by creating a patch in the city Forest Spread over 30 acres of land, once barren but home to thousands of indigenous people Tree Now.
This urban forest named ‘Anand Van’ is located in NIBM area and has been developed over the years by Anand Van Mitra Mandal (AVMM) on forest department owned land which has appreciated the work of the group.
This voluntary group involved local citizens, students, conservationists, corporates and children from nearby slums in their arduous task of converting dry land to green by conducting weekly tree plantation drives.
“Till 2013, this 33 acres of forest land was barren, barren and rocky, where garbage, construction waste was dumped. It used to be the place of all illegal activities. But after persuading some local residents, we started planting saplings and Ensured that they are taken care of,” said 65-year-old Praveen Kumar Anand, president of AVMM.
He said, “It was a difficult task, but we convinced the people of the area about the importance of reclaiming the space and how it will pay us dividends in the future. Gradually, the movement has grown in numbers. Got it.”
As soon as the forest department came to know about the activity, it helped the group and built a fence and a gate to prevent encroachment and trespass, he said.
Anand said that availability of water for growing plants is a major challenge.
“We used to bring water in cans and appealed to people to donate water through tankers,” he said.
Since protection of plants and trees was important, children living in nearby slums were included.
He said that to attract the birds, he has planted various trees and plants.
“We have also grown mulberries, and to our surprise, different types of birds are now coming to Anandvan,” he said.
Bhupesh Sharma, another member of the group, said, “We have planted 10,000 trees so far which includes 80 to 90 indigenous varieties of trees. Due to the scientific method of planting trees and post-planting care, the survival rate of trees is around 95. percentages.”
Talking about the activity, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Pune) Rahul Patil said, “This group is doing a great job. Anand Van model is a good example of how barren land can be converted into forest. . Such models need to be replicated elsewhere.”
This urban forest named ‘Anand Van’ is located in NIBM area and has been developed over the years by Anand Van Mitra Mandal (AVMM) on forest department owned land which has appreciated the work of the group.
This voluntary group involved local citizens, students, conservationists, corporates and children from nearby slums in their arduous task of converting dry land to green by conducting weekly tree plantation drives.
“Till 2013, this 33 acres of forest land was barren, barren and rocky, where garbage, construction waste was dumped. It used to be the place of all illegal activities. But after persuading some local residents, we started planting saplings and Ensured that they are taken care of,” said 65-year-old Praveen Kumar Anand, president of AVMM.
He said, “It was a difficult task, but we convinced the people of the area about the importance of reclaiming the space and how it will pay us dividends in the future. Gradually, the movement has grown in numbers. Got it.”
As soon as the forest department came to know about the activity, it helped the group and built a fence and a gate to prevent encroachment and trespass, he said.
Anand said that availability of water for growing plants is a major challenge.
“We used to bring water in cans and appealed to people to donate water through tankers,” he said.
Since protection of plants and trees was important, children living in nearby slums were included.
He said that to attract the birds, he has planted various trees and plants.
“We have also grown mulberries, and to our surprise, different types of birds are now coming to Anandvan,” he said.
Bhupesh Sharma, another member of the group, said, “We have planted 10,000 trees so far which includes 80 to 90 indigenous varieties of trees. Due to the scientific method of planting trees and post-planting care, the survival rate of trees is around 95. percentages.”
Talking about the activity, Deputy Conservator of Forests (Pune) Rahul Patil said, “This group is doing a great job. Anand Van model is a good example of how barren land can be converted into forest. . Such models need to be replicated elsewhere.”
.