Nayagarh: World Environment Day is observed June 5 every year by various government and private agencies to make people realise the value of trees for sustenance of living beings. Unfortunately, this concern for environment has been a once a year affair for many.
However, here is a man who has dedicated his life for the conservation of trees and environment. For Antaryami Sahoo, more popular as Gachha Sir (tree teacher), an elderly man of Kantilo Krushnosar village under Khandapada block of this district, taking care of trees has been a way of life. He considers them his most precious treasures.
Sahoo, who considers June 5 the most auspicious day of the calendar, works round the clock to ensure that trees grow properly.
“Planting trees is a not a big deal, taking care of them in a proper manner is most important,” the environment lover says.
The objective of his life is not only conservation of trees but also to utilise their fruits and flowers for benefit of all living beings.
Sahoo has never received financial assistance from any government or private organisation. He, of course, has received some awards for his untiring love for vegetation.
The tree lover is a little upset over the government’s preference to plant neem and other trees instead of fruit saplings like mango and black plum (jamun) along roads.
The forest department prefers to plant fast-growing trees to shift responsibility, he alleges. Sahoo is disturbed by the mindless felling of trees for road expansion projects.
Big trees can be shifted with the help of modern technology and it can extend their lifespan, he argued.
The green crusader requests people to spend at least an hour from their daily schedule to take care of plants considering it a social responsibility instead of seeking government assistance.
Inspired by Sahoo many youths including Santosh Dalai of Banapur, Bharat Sahoo of Madhapur and Manas Nayak of Kaliapalli have come forward to plant trees along the roads. PNN