DIGBOI, April 7 � As part of the green drive and wildlife conservation of Tinsukia district, a plantation and awareness programme was held within Digboi Arboretum at Bogapani on Sunday.
The programme was organized by the Digboi Division of Forests. Accordingly, a drawing and art competition on the theme of forest and wildlife was held among the school children of different age groups from nursery to class ten in the afternoon. The competition was followed by plantation of 500 saplings of 25 different species of citrus fruits, a few of which were by now rare. The varieties were both indigenous and exotic. The plantation was led by Ranjan Kumar Das, DFO of Digboi Division and participated by Pradip Gogoi, ADC (Forest i/c) and Project Director (i/c) of Tinsukia district, Dr Amrit Borbora, chief scientist of the Citrus Research Station of AAU at Tinsukia, Dr RK Das, horticultural scientist and HN Sarma, retired principal of Margherita College, apart from members of several NGOs, local public and the officials of the forest department.
The awareness meeting was held on the premises of the information centre of the arboretum under the president ship of HN Sarma. The purpose of the occasion was explained by Krishna Gogoi. Pradip Gogoi, Dr Amrit Borbora and Dr RK Das attended the meeting as distinguished guests. Ranjan Kumar Das elaborated on �the Green Tinsukia District� drive and the need for conservation of wildlife. Das also made an audiovisual presentation on the theme entitled �Aai moi punor jonom lom�.
Pradip Gogoi in his speech stressed that human beings must be respectful and tolerant to wildlife and said that the car of life could run on when there was the ecological bonding and harmony among all the factors. Dr Amrit Borbora highlighted that the Tinsukia district and more particularly the Dehing-Patkai Wildlife Sanctuary was an important segment of the Eastern Himalayan biodiversity hot spot. Dr RK Das elaborated on the composite nature of life and said that the Earth presented a compact picture.
Papori Khatoniar, Baputi Handique, Rubul Tanti, Subhasis Arandhara and Abhijit Baruah made presentations on ecological balance, birds, orchids, moths and butterflies, and Asian elephants respectively. Ranjan Kumar Das placed in the meeting a proposal to name Digboi-Duliajan Road as Patkai Bio-diversity Road and the meeting unanimously accepted the proposal.
HN Sarma in his address referred to Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz�s view that diminishing natural resources was the real scarcity in the world and the underdeveloped world suffered most in this regard. He, therefore, focused on innovations to save resources and environment. Sarma also said that the gradually dwindling wildlife and their habitat had to be fully protected in order to ensure stability as well as development.
The winners of the competitions were awarded prizes by the dignitaries present.
