Retired teacher creates mini forest in Sangareddy
Sangareddy: Complementing the TRS government’s massive efforts to transform Telangana into a green State, a retired teacher has converted his three acres of land at Gonguluru village in Pulkal mandal of Sangareddy district into a mini forest that includes 36 tamarind trees that are over 70 years old!
The mini forest is also home to over 70 different kinds of plants including a variety of medicinal plants, fruit-bearing, timber, spices, among others, and the man behind this incredible transformation is Naaram Shivaraj (67), a retired teacher who subsequently pursued a career as a lawyer in Sangareddy.
Speaking to this newspaper, Shivaraj said that he initially planted some teakwood trees in his three acres of land located close to Singur road, but later decided to convert it into a forest. Stating that the land already had 35 tamarind trees, the conservationist said he started planting trees such as mahogany, sandalwood, red sanders, and teak 10 years ago. Besides, he also planted fruit-bearing trees such as mango, custard apple, star fruit, spices like clove, true cardamom, cinnamon, and medicinal plants such as Ranapala, Samudrapala, among others. A 70-year-old sapota tree also stands proud among the other trees.
Pointing out that many of the trees have been around even before he was born, he said initially, he wanted to plant timber but later decided to convert it into a forest and started planting a variety of trees he bought from various nurseries across the State. To attract birds, Shivaraj is now concentrating on planting more fruit-bearing trees which yield fruits round the year. In addition to this, Sivaraj, who owns another 14 acres of land in the village, has decided to convert three more acres of land close to river Manjeera into a forest in the days to come.
Shrinking green
Stating that the greenery was fast disappearing all over the world, Shivaraj observed that it was time to grow man-made forests to ensure fresh air in every village. “I started the mini afforestation project with the hope that others will follow suit,” the retired teacher said, adding that several persons had visited the nature’s wonder in a small piece of land.
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