The Odisha government planted more than ten million saplings on Wednesday to mark the state's gratitude towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who turned 75 on September 17.
The achievement was announced by Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi via a social media post. He stated that the initial target of planting 7.5 million saplings had been surpassed by 1.33 pm, and by 2.16 pm, the total stood at 10,021,236 saplings planted across 41,080 sites in all 30 district of the stsate. Sundergarh district planted the highest number of saplings at 968,440, followed by Koraput with 859,237 and Keonjhar with 787,398. An official said that around 2.5 million people, including workers from industries and the armed forces, contributed to the effort.
In a post on X, the Chief Minister said: "The trees being planted today - each tree is a testament to our resolve for a green and beautiful Odisha, each tree is to thank Modi ji's love for Odisha, his reverence, and his commitment to Odisha's development." He added that the campaign had united society for the environment and would become even more widespread in the future, positively impacting the environment and serving as a testament to the Prime Minister's leadership.
The plantation drive was conducted under the 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' campaign, with pictures and videos of the activities uploaded to the 'Meri LiFE' portal for easy tracking. While Majhi participated in the programme at the Ekamra College campus, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan planted saplings at the Sainik School campus in Sambalpur. He said that over 450,000 saplings would be planted in Sambalpur during 'Seva Paksha'. Bharatiya Janata Party vice-president and MP Baijayant Panda also joined the programme at a seaside village in Kendrapara district.
Meanwhile, Majhi also took part in a cleanliness drive under the 'Swachhata Hi Seva' campaign in Bhubaneswar to mark Modi's birthday. Senior BJP leaders, including state president Manmohan Samal and state in-charge Vijaypal Singh Tomar, also joined in, sweeping the streets alongside party workers.
Majhi described September 17 as a moment of "national pride" and recalled Modi's previous visit to the state last year when he celebrated his birthday by eating 'Kheer' with a tribal woman and launching the 'Subhadra Yojana'. The Chief Minister said that campaigns like 'Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam' and 'Swachhata Hi Seva' reflect the government's vision for a clean environment, women's health, and family safety.
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