Bhubaneswar, July 7: Joining the efforts to expand the city’s green cover, students of the SOA University undertook a roadside plantation drive in the Kalinga Nagar area here on Thursday to mark the nationwide Van Mahotsav week celebrations.
More than 750 saplings of seven different varieties of trees were planted by the students in the presence of senior University faculty members and officials. The NSS Bureau of the University organized the mega plantation drive involving NSS units functioning in the nine different institutions under it.
Mr. Prasanta Kumar Mishra, Divisional Forest Officer, City Forest Division, Bhubaneswar, who was the chief guest at the event, congratulated the University for taking the plantation initiative. “Care should be taken to ensure that the saplings thrived and blossomed into beautiful trees. The need is to expand the city’s green cover,” he said.
Mr. Mishra said that efforts were being made by the forest department for plantation of one lakh saplings each in Bhubaneswar and Cuttack cities this year while other agencies were also putting in their efforts.
The saplings planted during the drive included Karanja, Radhachuda, Krushnachuda, Mahalimba and Putrajibam, Dr. Nachiketa Sharma, Program Coordinator, NSS, said.
SOA University’s Dean, Students Welfare, Prof. S.S.Nanda, Dean of the faculty of medicine, Prof. Gangadhar Sahu, Dean of the faculty of management, Prof. Anup Samantaray and senior faculties of different departments were present.
