Adding yet another feather to its cap, RoundGlass Foundation’s Plant For Punjab initiative has won the state-level Dharat Hariyali Award, and a cash prize of Rs 75,000. Instituted by Punjab-based NGO, SOCH (Society for Conservation and Healing of Environment), working in the environment space, the award was presented during the Environment Conservation Fair, 2021, held on December 18, at village Khosa Kotla in Moga district.
Over 3,000 people, 50 organizations, and 150 organic farmers participated in the event.
The Foundation team had set up a Plant For Punjab stall that displayed 40 native tree seeds of Punjab and 38 native trees of the state.
Plant for Punjab initiative is focused on rebuilding the state’s natural ecosystem and restoring its green cover. The Foundation is on a mission to restore Punjab’s ecological balance by planting trees in rural areas of the state. It has already planted more than 5 lakh trees and created 450 Mini Forests across 16 districts since 2018. The planted saplings cover 130 species ranging from native, ornamental, medicinal, to fruit species. Sixty of these are species native to Punjab, including desi kikar, rahooda, desi beri, reru, jhand, van, farmah, falahi, etc. that have either disappeared or are on the verge of extinction.
Tree plantation is successful when the saplings survive to grow into trees. To ensure a high survival rate, the Foundation involves village Panchayats, volunteers, and youth club members who help plant and take care of these saplings. Along with this, the Foundation also collaborates with the government’s Van Mitra scheme under which one MGNREGA worker is provided to take care of every 200 saplings for 100 days. These efforts ensure that the survival rate of the saplings is above 90%. RoundGlass Foundation’s on-ground team is closely working with over 6,000 volunteers across Punjab to make Plant For Punjab a success.
In addition, the RoundGlass Foundation was also nominated for its work in waste management. The waste management stall showcased the different forms of waste and how segregation of waste at the source level makes our waste management initiative a success.