The heritage tree category includes trees related to the spiritual and freedom movement.
CM Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Saturday started Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan from Bijnor by planting a sapling of ‘Kalpavriksha’ on the banks of Ganga. Inaugurating the state-wide massive plantation drive, the Chief Minister distributed saplings to schoolchildren and called upon every individual to plant saplings extensively to save the environment. Earlier, he laid the foundation stone of the Government Sanskrit Inter College at Vidur Kuti. He also inaugurated and laid the foundation stones of various development projects worth Rs 445 crore. Addressing the public gathering, Chief Minister Yogi noted that Bijnor has a long history dating back thousands of years. “This is the sacred meditation place of Mahatma Vidur, where Ganga's son Bhishma also spent his childhood. This is the land where Lord Krishna preferred to eat 'Sarson Ka Saag' at Mahatma Vidur's home to Duryodhana's ‘Malpua’ because Mahatma Vidur is a symbol of righteousness and public welfare.” Congratulating the people of Uttar Pradesh for Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2023, Yogi said: “With the planting of 30 crore saplings as part of the state's extensive plantation campaign, UP is setting a new record today.” Jal Shakti Minister Swatantra Dev Singh, Forest Minister Arun Kumar Saxena, Additional Chief Secretary, Forest, Manoj Singh, Principal Secretary, Home, Sanjay Prasad, Principal Chief Conservator of Forests Mamta Sanjeev Dubey, and former Minister Ashok Kataria among others were present.
Aimed at preserving the state’s cultural heritage, the Uttar Pradesh government will nurture 948 heritage trees through the Heritage Tree Adoption Scheme.
As many as 28 species of trees that are more than 100 years old have been designated as “heritage trees.” These trees are spread over all the 75 districts of the state. There are a maximum of 99 heritage trees in Varanasi, 53 in Prayagraj, 37 in Hardoi, 35 in Ghazipur, and 34 in Unnao.
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Among the special heritage trees in the state, the Adansonia tree of Jhunsi (Prayagraj) mentioned by the Chinese traveler Hiuen Tsang, the Peelu tree located in the Ter Kadamba temple complex, and Nidhi Van of Mathura, Akshayavat in the Prayagraj fort, Banyan tree located at Valmiki Ashram in Unnao district, places popular as Luv Kush Birthplace and Janki Kund.
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Along with that, banyan trees located in NBRI Lucknow and Mahamaya Devi Temple Complex, Ghaziabad, associated with the first freedom struggle, are included.
The UP government officials here on Monday said guidelines have been given for the selection and documentation of heritage trees by the Department of Environment, Forest, and Climate Change. This time, a Heritage Tree Garden will also be developed to grow saplings of these trees.
More than 100 years old trees, belonging to 28 species, and situated in non-forest areas (community land) have been designated as ‘heritage trees’ by the Uttar Pradesh State Biodiversity Board. These include Aru, Arjun, Mango, Tamarind, Kaim, Kareel, Kusum, Khirni, Shami, Gamhar, Gular, Chitwan, Chilbil, Jamun, Neem, Adansonia, Pakad, Peepal, Peelu, Banyan, Mahua, Mahogany, Mysore Banyan, Sheesham, Sal, Semal, Haldu and Tumal. There are 422 Peepal and 363 Banyan trees.
The heritage tree category includes trees related to the spiritual and freedom movement. In Gorakhpur, the hometown of the Chief Minister, 19 trees have been designated as heritage trees.
It also includes, mother trees of Dussehri and Langra mangoes in Lucknow and Varanasi, Bachan Imli in Fatehpur, Imli tree in Imlitala temple complex in Mathura, Karil tree in Pratapgarh, Adansonia tree in Barabanki, Pakad tree in Hapur and Sant Kabir Nagar, Bodhi tree of Sarnath, Peepal tree of Ambedkar Nagar, famous as Baba Jharkhand and Peepal tree associated with freedom movement at Ordinance Cloth Factory Shahjahanpur.
Meanwhile, under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2024, Heritage Tree Gardens will be established in 11 districts of Uttar Pradesh to raise awareness about the identified heritage trees among the state’s residents. These gardens will be created in Gorakhpur, Ayodhya, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Meerut, Bareilly, Mathura, Sitapur, Chitrakoot, and Mirzapur.
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