Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao today launched his government's ambitious drive to plant 46 crore saplings in a year.
He planted a 'Kadhambam' plant at Choutuppal and a Neem sapling at Gundrampally in neighbouring Nalgonda district.
Addressing a public meeting, he appealed to people to make the drive, named 'Telanganaki Haritha Haram' (green ornament for Telangana), a success to make the state green with bountiful rains.
Students and others planted saplings along the Hyderabad-Vijayawada National Highway.
The objective is to have green cover on both sides of the highways giving a memorable experience to the travellers, a state Government release said.
The drive will continue for two weeks.
The Governor, Chief Minister, ministers, MPs, MLAs, MLCs, bureaucrats, police officers, officials at all levels and the school students would plant the trees.
As many as 4,213 nurseries across the state will provide the saplings.
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An official release said that some one lakh green
volunteers planted over 1.25 lakh saplings all along the 165 km stretch of the Hyderabad-Vijayawada National Highway (No 65) in Telangana.
The goal was to develop a green corridor all along the highway, it said.
The Chief Minister appealed the people to take up the plantation drive as their initiative, rather than considering it a government programme.
Persisting drought conditions are "our own making", Rao said, asking the people to help address the main cause of such calamities by taking up plantation programme.
"Just planting the saplings is not enough. It will be the responsibility of every citizen to ensure their 100 per cent survival," he said.
