Litte green brigade rolls out plan to fight climate change

Hyderabad : Driven by a mission to enhance green cover and combat climate change, nine-year-old Aariv K Rao and his five friends have initiated a plantation drive by planting saplings.

In his plantation mission, the Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) provided saplings, and the TGCOE Horticulture department supported these young environmental enthusiasts with training.

Speaking to The Hans India, Aariv K Rao, a 9-year-old boy and resident of Jeedimetla village, said, “I travel a lot with my parents. During a recent trip, I came across many deserted places without a single tree. This made me think that we should do something for nature. So, I started planning to plant trees in different localities last year, and finally, this year, I was able to execute it along with my friends Shridha Goud, Aarohi Nayak, Ananya Shiv, and Rohan Naidu. When the plantation drive began on June 3, our initial target was to plant 100 trees. With support from the GHMC, we successfully planted an impressive 120 trees at the Maccha Bolarum dump yard on June 5, which is also World Environment Day.”

Sharing about his entire journey, Aariv said, “The GHMC provided saplings, all of which are native and non-invasive species like eucalyptus, as well as various decorative plants. I emailed the GHMC Commissioner, D Ronald Rose, and he promptly replied that GHMC officials would support us in my mission to increase green cover. Additionally, the TGCOE Horticulture department guided us on how to plant trees and provided us one-week training.” Aariv and his team have also collected over 200 mango seeds from the residents of their apartment.

These seeds will be germinated under the meticulous care and monitoring of the TGCOE Horticulture department. Aariv’s vision is now set on expanding the campaign throughout the city and beyond, instilling a passion for planting in hearts across India. “We have planned to organise a plantation drive every weekend,” he added.