10 lakh saplings to be planted during afforestation drive

As part of the drive,201 hectares of land in south Kashmir’s Anantnag and Kulgam districts will be covered with 1.97 lakh of trees,while 2.57 lakh trees will also be planted on 245 hectares in north Kashmir’s Baramulla and Kupwara districts,Ahmed said.

In central Kashmir,2.34 lakh trees will be planted on 134 hectares in the districts of Srinagar,Ganderbal and Budgam,he said,with around 80,000 trees helping reforestation efforts in the summer capital Srinagar.

More than two lakh trees will be planted in the next month in Shopian and Pulwama districts in south Kashmir expecting to cover 101 hectares,he said.

The Wildlife department will also plant 2.45 lakh trees in Dachigam national park,Khrew,Ajas,Daksum,Kheram,Avara,Hajan,Kothar and Lachmanpora areas in the valley.

The initiative comes at a time when illegal chopping and smuggling of wood and timber over the last 20 years has considerably damaged ecological balance in the region.