The Essar Foundation celebrated the occasion of Earth Day (April 22) on April 27-30, in the villages of Modpar, Singach and Rasangpar, near the Vadinar complex (Gujarat). Environment is one of the focus areas of the Foundation’s 3E programme framework; education and entrepreneurship being the other two.
The celebrations in the villages centered around the theme, ‘Our earth
is our friend; We must protect and care for her’. The Foundation procured about 150 saplings of local varieties of flowering trees, such as gulmohur (royal poinciana)
and karanj (Indian beech) for distribution among the villagers.
Green heroes, a short film, was screened
in the three villages, and the saplings were then distributed among the women in attendance, to plant
near their own homes. Villagers were also encouraged to make compost from natural waste and minimize the use of plastic.
To mark the occasion, five saplings were planted on the premises of the school and aanganwadi (government run crèche) in each village. Chetan G Sojitra, an environment scientist from the Marine National Park, Jamnagar, attended one of the events where he interacted with the women and explained the significance of protecting the environment.
The main idea behind the program was to generate awareness among the women and children, besides encouraging green practices – a concept that they enthusiastically embraced.
