Pune: Mahalunge Residents Launch ‘Prakriti Abhiyan’ to Protect Green Cover Of Hills
Pune: Mahalunge Residents Launch 'Prakriti Abhiyan' to Protect Green Cover Of Hills
12 June 2024
Pune- Residents of Mahalunge are becoming increasingly aware of the need to take care of their surroundings and ensure the green cover is not affected by ongoing building construction activities. The residents formed a group in April namely ‘Prakriti Abhiyaan’ to move forward and take measures to clean up the natural resources and restore biodiversity in the area. The group has more than 400 members who actively participate in environmental protection activities. It is composed entirely of Mhalunge residents with a will to safeguard the existing biodiversity and forests in the area.
“After conducting river-bed and hill-side surveys, we found out that a man-made pond exists on the hill which sees a frequent appearance of rabbits and peacocks. However, people had littered the place with trash. We took the initiative to clean up the pond as it will be a constant water source for various species of birds, plants, and animals. We held a tree plantation event on Sunday wherein we requested Kiran Chandere to support us by providing saplings and digging holes to ensure their growth. He provided soil, manure, and numerous saplings for the cause”, stated Srikanth Dalvi, the group’s leading member.
Speaking to Pune Pulse, Surabhi Joshi, one of the active members of the group said that the initiative was taken to protect the green cover. Infact, we started with clean-up of river side areas. We want to conserve the greenery of the area around us. We seek more participation from the local residents.
Prakriti Abhiyan’s main objective is to maintain ecological balance, prevent soil erosion, and return the land to its rightful owners, the biodiversity. According to the members, Prakriti Abhiyan will continue to work to achieve the following results-
1. Apart from conducting tree plantation drives, they will also look forward to maintaining them
2. A few selected volunteers will monitor the progress and growth of the trees daily
3. On weekends, the focus will primarily be on reopening CCTs and the bunding work to trap rainwater
4. Improve oxygen levels in the area and bring down the overall temperature
5. Provide a stable water source for various birds and animals
6. Taking steps to ensure summer has a lesser impact on the natural resources in the area
7. Conserve water in ponds and ensure a constant water supply
8. Ensure participant number keeps increasing to make a bigger impact
Another resident member of this group Satish Patange stated, “Currently, we are quite self-sufficient in working towards our discussed environmental goals but if needed, we will definitely request the Forest Department officials for support. But as of now, we are simply taking up this task as any responsible citizen should. We noticed the dire condition of the hill on one of our morning walks and since then we have held deliberate meetings and come up with Prakriti Abhiyan to jointly work towards environment protection”.
“We have conducted two drives till now and there is another pond clean-up activity which is scheduled on June 16. Our aim is not only limited to cleaning up the pond but also ensuring it is deep enough to gather water and can be turned into an irrigation facility. Our active members have increased significantly since the first event organized by the group and we hope to see new members joining in every time we hold an environmental conservation activity. We are also planning to conduct another drive in the first week of July which I will be leading. Prakriti Abhiyan will continue to work for a few more months to ensure nature is preserved in the long run”, said Prashant Kumar, another active resident.
Prakriti Abhiyan’s main objective is to maintain ecological balance, prevent soil erosion, and return the land to its rightful owners, the biodiversity. “Apart from tree planting, we also want to make efforts to maintain them and pay attention to their well-being. Our members have accepted the responsibility of taking care of these saplings for at least the next five years. A few members monitor the progress daily from Monday-Friday and then on weekends we work towards reopening CCTs (Continuous Contour Trenches) and bunding to help trap rainwater. We do not want the water to flow outside of the trenches to ensure plants keep getting sufficient water support even without manual work and to help increase the water levels of the area”, elaborated Srikanth Dalvi.
The group’s objective is to create a ‘dark forest’ cover on the hill and keep human activity to a bare minimum. The natural species should thrive on the land and have their own safe space amongst the ongoing construction. On June 16, they are conducting their next activity that focuses on cleaning up another man-made pond that is littered with plastic on the Mhalunge Hills.
The Group is led by Shrikant Dalvi, Surabhi S Joshi, Shivraj Humnabade, Ankush Padale , Satish Patange, Sunny Zha, Rahul Singh, Ganesh Jadhav, Prashant Kumar, Jyoti Singh, Mr. Ambekar. This event was in collaboration with Begins Volunteer NGO who provided tools and cans for watering plants and Kiran Chandere who provided Soil, Manure, 60+ Saplings and promised to supply water on a regular basis. 40+ SAPLINGS were brought by volunteers. Event was inaugurated by Baburao Chandere.
