Raipur: A 21 acres of barren land in Gram Panchayat Aani of Koriya district has been transformed into a lush green forest exhibition area housing thousands of herbal plants. This has been done as a part of Chief Minister’s Tree Plantation Promotion Scheme.
Minister In charge of the district Tamradhwaj Sahu had started tree plantation in this area for the first time in July last year.
This land had been marked to develop into the state’s first forest exhibition field, which has now come into existence. This land which was once barren has now many plants of medicinal importance and is gradually taking the shape of an Oxyzone. Here, an extended forest has been developed that has decorative plants, as well as fruit bearing plants. Moreover, more than 20,000 plants of medicinal value are planted here with the help of interstitial technique.
A standard exhibition field and a nursery have been set up here so that the Chief Minister Tree Plantation Scheme is implemented properly. Through the successful implementation of the MGNREGA, District Mineral Foundation Trust, and other departmental schemes, a large area in the village panchayat Aani has been turned into a Forest Exhibition Field. Here, in addition to shelter homes for animals, grasslands have also been developed, for which 5 Acres of land has been allocated. A fruit orchard of 10 Acres acreage is also being built here. If the agriculture scientists of the region are to be believed, every year, at least one lakh medicinal plants can be extracted from here and it will also prove to be a significant source of income.
District collector Kuldeep Sharma said that this new endeavor in Chhattisgarh will provide it with a unique identity. In this nursery, about 10,000 plants of 43 species have been planted, the maintenance work of which is taken care of by the Forest Department, Krishi Vigyan Kendra, and the Department of Horticulture. The rate at which this area is turning from a waste land to a Forest Exhibition Area, it can be said that in the future, the place will be open to many possibilities in the tourism sector and will also provide employment to the local villagers.
