Despite Massive Plantation Drives, Maharashtra Still Struggles For Green Cover On World Forestry Day

Maharashtra: Although the state received good rainfall this year, temperatures in many districts typically soar up to 45 degrees Celsius during the months of April and May. Consequently, every year, one begins to hear the familiar refrain that "this summer feels particularly intense". Citizens are left distressed by the unbearable heat. The issue of rising temperatures is inextricably linked to the environment; naturally, if one wishes to find a remedy for this heat, the subject of tree plantation comes to the forefront.

Every year, not merely hundreds of thousands, but millions of trees are planted across the state. Echoing the sentiment of the saint-poet—"Trees and vines are our kin, our companions in the wilderness"—tree plantation programs are meticulously planned and organised at the governmental level. These plantation drives are conducted in the presence of ministers and elected representatives, incurring expenses running into the millions. Photographs of these tree-planting events are widely publicised during the monsoon season; however, no one ever returns later to check on the fate of the saplings that were planted.

Meanwhile, large-scale deforestation continues unabated across the state. While it is imperative to halt this destruction, it appears that the authorities conveniently turn a blind eye to the issue. Consequently, the forests of the state have become barren, and rainfall levels have declined.

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Environmentalists repeatedly emphasise that—given Maharashtra's perpetual struggle with drought—expanding forest cover is the only viable solution to ensure adequate rainfall; yet, this advice is rarely taken with the seriousness it deserves. Instead, as a remedial measure, the state government formulates various policies specifically aimed at tree plantation.

In 2012, the "One Billion Trees Scheme" was announced. Following a change in government in 2014, a new scheme—this time targeting the planting of "Fifty Million Trees"—was unveiled. These initiatives were promoted with great fanfare and publicity. The common citizen felt a sense of relief and optimism upon hearing and reading the staggering figures—running into the millions—regarding the number of trees supposedly planted. In reality, however—let alone millions—not even hundreds of thousands of trees could actually be seen on the ground.

Ultimately, trees were planted only "on paper", solely to fulfil the statistical targets set for the tree plantation drives. Various government offices were assigned specific targets for tree plantation.

Schools were instructed to ensure that every student planted one tree. The enthusiasm among everyone was immense; schools patted themselves on the back by submitting reports claiming to have planted three thousand or two thousand trees within their premises. However, no one bothered to ask the pertinent question: what was the actual land area available to the schools, and how much space would the planted trees realistically occupy?

To cite the example of Jalgaon district: under the 'One Billion Tree Plantation Scheme', a staggering 44,126,000 trees were planted across the district during the three monsoon seasons between 2012 and 2014. Subsequently, under the 'Fifty Crore Tree Plantation Scheme', another 19,400,000 trees were planted. This means that, over a span of nearly ten years, more than 60 million trees were planted. In the decade preceding this period, 75 million trees had been planted.

In other words, a total of 150 million trees were planted over twenty years. This resulted in the squandering of nearly two billion rupees. Yet, despite all this, Jalgaon district appears desolate today. No one dares to ask the obvious question: where did these millions of planted trees go? During the summer, temperatures in Jalgaon soar to 46 degrees Celsius. In such a climate, when confronted with these statistics regarding the expenditure of millions on tree plantations, the common man begins to harbour a suspicion: were these trees planted merely on paper?

Today, trees are being felled on a massive scale, yet no new trees are being planted, nor are any efforts visible to ensure the survival of existing ones. Thousands of trees were slaughtered to make way for the construction of a four-lane highway.

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Although there is a mandatory obligation to plant new trees, it appears that the majestic, shade-giving trees have vanished, their place taken instead by delicate Bougainvillaea plants. The Satpura range was once rich in lush forest cover and abundant wildlife; it was home to numerous medicinal trees and plants. Although the Forest Department consistently denied it for many years, the Satpura range has historically served as a tiger habitat due to its dense forests. Today, there are six to eight tigers within the district. Despite wildlife conservation organisations having campaigned for years to establish a tiger corridor, the indifferent Forest Department remains stagnant; officials show absolutely no concern regarding this matter. The tree-plantation targets set by the government are merely fulfilled on paper, with no actual work being undertaken on the ground.

In Jalgaon city, a hundred banyan trees were planted in the Mehrun Lake area at the hands of former District Collector Rubal Agarwal, incurring an expenditure of thousands of rupees. Today, not a single banyan tree remains there—a glaring example of the municipal corporation's incompetence. To date, the municipal corporation claims to have planted thousands of trees through various "Tree Processions" (Vrukshadindi); yet today, one would have to search far and wide to find where those trees actually are. Jalgaon city is currently sweltering under the summer heat. Moreover, the ongoing construction of concrete roads within the city is further intensifying the heat and causing temperatures to feel even more extreme.

Citizens are desperately seeking shade and greenery; this raises the pertinent question: where have all these supposedly planted trees gone? How can the district—and indeed the entire state of Maharashtra—remain so barren despite the planting of millions of trees? Although millions of trees have reportedly been planted over the last few years, leaving the district and state still desolate, our elected representatives fail to notice this reality—perhaps because they never travel on foot. If the true intention is to make the state lush and green, one should aim not to plant millions of trees merely for the sake of numbers but rather to plant a thousand trees and ensure that every single one survives. Tree plantation will truly transform the state into a green haven—thereby increasing rainfall—only when it evolves into a genuine social movement. For this to happen, political will is absolutely essential.

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