GUWAHATI, Jan 4 � To mark its completion of 50 years, Guwahati Refinery on Wednesday dedicated a herbal-cum-medicinal park to the public as part of its golden jubilee initiative.
Dr RM Dubey, chairman of the Pollution Control Board, Assam, inaugurated the newly-developed herbal park in the presence of Dr Gunaram Khanikar, eminent herbal medicine specialist, BP Das, general manager, Guwahati Refinery, employees of the refinery, members of the media and the general public.
Spread over an area of around 1,500 sq. metres, the park is located in Sector II of Refinery Township and boasts of over 105 varieties of indigenous plants, herbs and shrubs having some medicinal or herbal use.
Dr Khanikar was associated with the project and provided his experience and expertise in selection of plants, their planting, care and identification. Sharing his thoughts on the occasion, Dr Khanikar said that the park was exceptional in the sense that no such park existed anywhere in the city, and therefore, would provide a great learning experience to students and people wishing to know more about indigenous plants.
Dr Khanikar also requested BP Das, general manager, Guwahati Refinery, to organize awareness programmes for children and adults alike from time to time, and also offered to provide his service to provide information on such plants and their usage in such programmes.
Dr Dubey, in his address, lauded the efforts of Guwahati Refinery in bringing forth the herbal park to the public and mentioned that it would be a showpiece for learners and would help inculcate love for nature in peoples� mind. He also stressed on environment consciousness being an inevitable part of development which people often tended to forget.
Earlier BP Das, general manager, while welcoming the gathering, spoke about the objective of having the park which was mainly to generate awareness amongst people, particularly children, on the use of indigenous plants for medicinal purposes and to provide an educative experience to students.
A booklet showcasing the various species of plants and herbs available in the park was also released on the occasion.
