Monday, September 29, 2008

A Morning of planting trees


Sunday morning 9 am - Odds are you would normally find me in my bed sound asleep with no intention of waking up for atleast a couple more hours. Instead I am awake since 6 in the morning, outside the comfort of my bed, my finger nails tucked with mud, a khurpi in one hand and a young sapling in another. And I am loving every moment of this time away from my bed, my heart filled with a unique happiness and satisfaction...

I have a mail from Selva (coordinator AID Delhi) to thanks for these happy moments. A week earlier Selva sent an email on AID mailing list stating that Kalpavriksha is organizing a tree plantation drive on the coming Sunday at a park in Mayur Vihar. Prof Rao from Kalpavriksha had requested AID volunteers to participate in the drive and since Selva was out of station he wanted someone to lead the drive.   

As soon as i saw the mail, I literally jumped at the opportunity of doing something as wonderful as planting trees. I wasn't so sure of leading anything, but I was determined to help in the drive in whatever way I could. I immediately wrote back to Selva and thankfully it turned out that leading only meant calling up Prof Rao to find out the details of the drive and passing on the information to all the interested AID volunteers and making sure the interested parties remain in sync. Prof Rao intimated me about the venue (Sahyog Apartments, Mayur Vihar) and his plans to start early in the morning since the weather had been keeping really hot for a few days. We also decided that since we were planning to plant around 100 saplings we didnt need more than 12-15 volunteers including the local residents who were more than willing to lend a helping hand.  I passed on the information to the interested volunteers and also invited an environmentalist friend who I knew would surely join.

Everything set, I couldnt wait for the Sunday to arrive. Ofcourse I had to get up at 6 to make sure that I had enough time to get ready, arm myself with a khurpi, pick up my friend and reach Mayur Vihar at the designated time of 8 am. We ended up 5 minutes early and were really surprised to find Prof Rao already there along with a couple of volunteers from Kritikal Solutions, Noida. After introduction Prof Rao told us about the park behind the apartments and his plans to plant 140 saplings in the semi-wilderness (his terminology for the badly maintained DDA park). He also told us that since the boundaries of the park were broken at a few places, his choice of species had been limited to those which would not be eaten by the goats, compared to the bio-diversity he would have ideally liked to plant there. So we would be planting begonia, sheesham, amaltas and kanakchampa along with few other shrub species. We also talked about the lovely weather and the rains for the last two days which would have made the soil humid and loose and ideal for the saplings. Things were shaping up to be perfect. 

Meanwhile, other volunteers kept pouring in. There were 6 volunteers from Kritkal Solutions, few residents from Sahyog apartments, Shivani from Noida who also brought her parents along and a young couple from Daryaganj. In all we formed the perfect number that was required for the job. Each of us picked up a sapling in both hands and made our way towards the park. On first look the park seemed quite small barely 20 feet wide, but the rectangular piece made up with its length stretching really long, with a few rectangular offshoots in between. Prof Rao believed that this was a great place to develop an excellent bio-diversity plantation. It was semi-wilderness indeed, with uncut grass and wild shrubs, but the wilderness added to the place. Unfortunately, lots of plastic and wrappers had also found their way from the neighbouring apartments. 

We started planting trees in a straight line from the beginning of the park gradually moving deeper towards the other end. Since the volunteers outnumbered the khurpis, pretty soon we had small teams, with one member digging a pit and the other planting the sapling and refilling the pit with soil. The rains had made the soil loose and much easier to dig and plant. Still it was fairly laborious work for the likes of me and the other software professionals, and the elderly residents who formed the majority of the group. The saplings which had already been grown for 2-3 years in a nursery, weighed atleast 3-4 kg with the soil wrapped around their roots. Carrying them further and further into the park started getting tougher and tougher on the tiring forearm and shoulders. Yet, I am sure that no one present there minded the work a least bit. I could feel so much energy all around me and everyone was eager to plant as many saplings as they can. Not once did I saw anyone sitting idle or resting. Everyone was totally engrossed in their work, deriving the same satisfaction as I was. It was so heartening to also see a 5 year old kid planting a tree with her mom. Meanwhile we also drew enquiries from the few passers by, who also expressed their happiness to see their parks being planted with trees. 

So we finished with the trees, and were done with the shrubs a short while after. Everyone had enjoyed the experience so much that all of us were disappointed that there were no more saplings to be planted. Our hands were covered in mud, shoulders sore and clothes soiled, yet it had been a most satisfying day. We were really feeling grateful for the opportunity. On the way back, we tried to collect as much plastic as we could from the park. I guess we all shared this concern which was finally voice by someone regarding the subsequent care of the planted saplings. Prof Rao assured us that since the saplings were already a couple of years old, they should be able to thrive on their own if left undisturbed. However, he had talked to a gardner to water the trees periodically. 

Our final reward for the day was a brief talk by Prof Rao on various enviromental issues and various projects in which Kalpavriksha is involved. He talked about the numerous trees that are being cut each day for building more roads and buildings. 35000 trees were uprooted in the very first phase of Delhi Metro-rail construction, and surely an equal number would have been cut in each subsequent phase. The law requires than an equal number of trees are planted else where, but companies often work around this law by providing false figures and bribing officials. By their own admission, the forest officials maintain that there is no land left around Delhi for planting trees, yet more and more trees are being uprooted daily. I am sure there is no need to stress the importance of trees for us, so am I to believe that even if replantation does take place, a tree planted in the outskirts replaces the benefits of a tree in my locality. The need for procuring more and more land would keep growing, but where do I stop. He cited the example of the UP link road just in front of us which was already a four lane road but it had been decided to extend it to six lanes. This would mean uprooting numerous trees on the banks of Yamuna for extending a road which barely sees congestion except for a couple of rush hours each day. 

He also talked about the declining bio-diversity and bird population in Delhi. Even though DDA and MCD plant trees, for some reason they mainly stick to a few species like Ashoka and Palm trees instead of fruit trees like Jamun, guava etc which are very bird friendly. The number of bird species in Delhi is rapidly declining from around 250 to just a handful, simply because they arent enough number of fruit trees for them to eat and make their nests in. He also showed us how MCD was strangulating the trees existing on pavements by covering them with concrete. Kalpavriksha had obtained a ruling from court making it necessary to leave sufficient uncovered area around trees but its another task to get it followed everywhere. Kalpavriksha is also fightining cases against deforestation due to mining around Delhi, trees cut for roads and metro construction. Often the legal battle results in failure but every favorable verdict keeps them going on. Unfortunately, they are being forced to fight increasing number of battles in courtrooms rather than out in the open. However, Kalpavriksha do run projects in and around Delhi to study bio-diversity and tree population.  

All this information served to re-emphasize the fact that all of us already know. Each day we are losing more and more plants and animal species to development. Yet somehow we need to strike a balance between development and conservation. Not out of sense of charity, not to ensure survival of other species but to ensure our own survival too. Its so obvious that our survival depends on survival of other life too, that all of us are weaved together in this intricate web of life. Just other day I received a mail stating the fact that children growing up in area without trees are 40% more prone to ailments like asthma. Yet we keep ignoring the obvious, hoping that things would turn up right somehow. There are some of us who choose to turn a blind eye to the environmental concerns that uncontrolled development is bringing down on us. There are others who are worried but clueless what they can do. Well you can start by planting trees and plants in your neighbourhood, community parks, in your backyard, even in small pots in your house. I can assure its a most satisfying experience to get your hands dirty in mud. Others would say that I havent cut a single tree in my life, its the stupid MCD and government. Yet its you who adds to the demand of more roads, more buildings, more raw material that ultimately lead to trees being cut. Everytime you walk down to the market instead of driving, everytime you car-pool, take a bus, avoid an unnecessary trip to the shopping mall, decide not to buy that dress we dont really need - you save a tree. Could it get easier than this. Is it enough - probably no - but surely we all need to make a start.  Better soon for our own good.