SCCL employee in Kothagudem spreads greenery planting saplings every day

Kotturu Nurvi Rajasekhar started planting saplings every day to spread of greenery after the launch of the Haritha Haram programme by the Telangana government

Kothagudem: Chief Minister K Chandrashekhar Rao’s ambitious initiative Telangana Ku Haritha Haram has inspired many individuals to embark on environmental protection activities by spreading greenery.

An SCCL employee, Kotturu Nurvi Rajasekhar aka Mokkala Rajasekhar is one among them. He undertook a novel initiative, Prakrithi Haritha Deeksha, wherein he started planting saplings every day. He started the activity on July 1, 2020 and is still continuing.

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Speaking to Telangana Today, he said he wanted to do his part for the spread of greenery after the launch of the Haritha Haram programme by the State government. In 2016, he started working seriously for environmental protection.

As part of his deeksha, Rajasekhar plants saplings of different varieties, including fruit bearing, flowering and medicinal plants every day. On special occasions like birth anniversaries of his friends, family members, noted personalities, national and international days, he plants saplings dedicated to them.

Saplings are planted at offices, houses of friends and family members, so that the plants are taken care of regularly. As on June 5, his deeksha reached 1070 days and planted around 10,000 saplings.

“I make sure that the majority of the saplings I plant survives,” he said.

Rajasekhar developed one herbal garden with 100 varieties of plants at SCCL’s Central Workshop in Kothagudem where he serves as a fitter technician. Another herbal garden was developed at an electrical substation at the B-powerhouse area with 132 varieties. He always carries a few plants on his motorbike and presents them to friends and acquaintances when he visits them. He also campaigns about the dangers of plastic carry bags and distributes cloth bags which he gets stitched at his own expense.

“I purchase saplings from nurseries, propagate through seeds and cuttings. I have sown seeds of different fruit bearing plants on Bodagutta, a hillock in Kothagudem ” Rajasekhar noted, adding that he also initiated as many as 25 nature lovers into Haritha Deeksha.

TGOs Association leader Sangam Venkata Pullaiah, who took the deeksha sometime back, has planted around 800 saplings, he informed. In Kothagudem he is spreading the tradition of presenting plants on anniversaries and public meetings instead of bouquets.

Rajasekhar proposed a ‘Green Motor Vehicle Garden’ concept wherein every person has to carry an indoor plant on his or her motorbike and inside cars to highlight importance of environmental protection.