Eco awareness programme held in Udhampur

Basantgarh (Udhampur) June 10(ANI): As part of the ongoing celebrations of World Environment Week, an Environment-cum-Eco Awareness drive was organized in one of the remotest and militancy affected area of Basantgarh in Jammu and Kashmir's Udhampur District.

Organized in cooperation of Department of Environment and Remote Sensing, J and K Government and World Wildlife Fund (WWF) J and K Chapter for the first time ever in this remotest sub-division of the State, it witnessed a major participation of students as well as local residents of the area.

Over 1500 persons participated in the Eco Awareness Rally/Nature Walk, organized by the students of various schools of the Sub Division including locals of the area and Sub-Divisional Magistrate Amit Sharma and other dignitaries led from the front to disseminate the message of safeguarding environment and ill effects of tree felling amongst the public of this dense forest area.

The second leg of the programme included a debate-competition in which the finalists of various schools of the Sub Division participated and shared their respective thoughts about burning issue of 'Global Warming'.

In the next phase, a painting competition was organized in which students of different age groups participated. They drew pictures based on the theme 'Environmental Degradation and Ecological Balance' in which the students drew lot of creative paintings.

Finally, a competition in the form best of 'Dust Bin Making from Waste Wood' was organized. The objective of organizing such kind of competition was to disseminate the idea of developing a habit of using bins for disposal of all kinds of wastes in these hilly (forest) terrains and at the same time, making optimum utilization of waste wood.

Amit Sharma, Sub Divisional Magistrate, advocated for conservation of Environment and Forests in these remote areas and said that the students have to act as active messengers for the same.

He also requested the participants, students and public in general to take a pledge on this very day to contribute actively towards plantation of more and more trees, stopping the criminal act of tree felling and prevention of forest fires. By Tahir Nadeem Khan (ANI)