World Environment Day: Padma Shri awardee, who turned Rajasthan's arid lands into canvas of green

New Delhi, June 5 ‘Growing trees with just one litre of water’ would seem an impossible task for many, but Rajasthan’s ‘nature warrior’ Sunda Ram Verma made this possible with his firm resolve and relentless endeavour, years ago. The story of the transformation of Sikar’s drylands with his tireless efforts turned many heads and also brought him into the national spotlight.

Modi Story, a popular social media handle on X, on Thursday shared the story of the transformation of Rajasthan’s arid lands into a canvas of green.

Sharing the inspiring story, the Modi Story handle says that the pioneering initiative of Padma Shri Sunda Ram Verma was noticed by the then Gujarat CM Narendra Modi, who enquired with him about launching a similar initiative in his home state.

In the video, Sunda Ram Verma says he had developed a technique of raising plants and trees with a lifetime requirement of just one litre of water and this generated curiosity everywhere.

“I studied and researched a lot on growing trees with one litre of water. My story was reported in the Gujarat newspapers. After that, I received a call from the then CM Narendra Modi. He asked me whether such practice could be implemented in Gujarat,” he said, recounting the development.

Twenty years later, his tireless work and research were recognised as he was conferred with the Padma Shri honour in 2021.

The noted environmentalist has grown over 50,000 trees in the arid Shekawati region of Rajasthan using a water-saving technique, ‘dryland agroforestry’ that requires only 1 litre of water per tree once.

Today, the Padma Shri Sunda Ram Verma is aggressively taking forward his mission of turning 'drylands into farmlands'.

He says that for 25 years, he planted 50,000 trees, but after getting bestowed with the nation’s fourth highest civilian honour, he has planted another 50,000 — in just two years.

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