Rayagada, Sept 8: A large-scale environmental awareness campaign and tree plantation drive was organised at Gurumaguda village here on Monday to mark the International Day of Clean Air for Blue Skies.
The programme was jointly organised by the Regional Office of the Odisha State Pollution Control Board (OSPCB), Rayagada, and Rayagada Municipality with an aim to promote environmental protection and create awareness about the need to address global warming and climate change.
Assistant Conservator of Forests, Rayagada Forest Division, Sachidananda Sethi, attended the plantation drive as the chief guest. More than a hundred saplings of native tree species were planted during the programme.
Participants were urged to plant at least one tree each and take responsibility for its protection and survival. Hundreds of women, youths and students joined the green campaign and took a pledge to keep the environment clean and green.
In the second phase of the programme, a fruit sapling and jute bag distribution drive was organised in front of the Rayagada Municipality office. Kuldeep Kumar, Executive Officer of Rayagada Municipality, attended the programme as the chief guest and highlighted the importance of trees in protecting the environment in the present-day context.
Jute bags and saplings of various fruit-bearing and medicinal plants were distributed among members of the public as part of efforts to promote sustainable alternatives to plastic.
Municipal councillors said wider use of jute bags could play an important role in creating a plastic-free environment and urged people to adopt eco-friendly alternatives in their daily lives.
Deputy Environmental Engineer Ripu Kumar Sahu administered the environmental awareness pledge to the participants. The programme concluded with a vote of thanks to all those who contributed to the campaign.
