During the 114th episode of “Mann Ki Baat,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday highlighted “Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam” campaign stating that this was a recent example of strong resolve and collective participation in achieving significant societal outcomes.
In his monthly radio program, PM Modi noted that the initiative has successfully mobilised people across the country to engage in environmental conservation efforts.
“When there’s a confluence of our strong resolve and collective participation, it leads to amazing results for the entire society. Its most recent example is ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’–this was an amazing campaign; such an example of public participation is truly inspiring. People in every nook and corner of the country have done wonders in this campaign, which was started for the conservation of the environment,” the Prime Minsiter said.
PM Modi stated that this campaign has seen remarkable participation from various states, including Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Telangana, which have all exceeded their sapling planting targets.
“Uttar Pradesh, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Telangana have created a new record by planting more saplings than the set target. Under this campaign, more than 26 crore saplings have been planted in Uttar Pradesh. The people of Gujarat planted more than 15 crore saplings. More than 6 crore saplings were planted in Rajasthan in the month of August alone. Thousands of schools in the country are also participating in this campaign with great enthusiasm,” he stated.
PM Modi also shared inspiring stories from individuals involved in tree planting.
One such example was KN Rajasekhar from Telangana, who began a personal tree-planting campaign four years ago, committing to plant one tree daily.
Despite facing challenges where he met with an accident this year, he has planted more than 1,500 saplings.
Additionally, he mentioned Subhashri from Madurai, Tamil Nadu, who has created a garden with more than 500 rare medicinal plants and herbs.
Besides this, PM Modi also appreciated the efforts made to preserve languages with few speakers, including the Santhali language.
Taking the example of Shriman Ramjeet Tudu from Mayurbhanj, Odisha, Modi said that he was leading a campaign to create an online identity for Santhali and that he had developed a digital platform where literature in Santhali can be read and written.