Meet 50-year-old Rajendra Lenka alias Teru of Malapatana village under Chandiagadi GP of Aul block. Though the daily wager has been staying in a ramshackle thatched house by overing it with polythene sheets, but he has already planted more than 10,000 trees in his locality.
Since last 2012, he has been planting trees in his locality and he has managed to convert the land into a mini forest. He targets to plant at least one lakh trees in his life span and to see all roadside lands turn lush green.
He has planted fruit bearing, wild and mangroves trees. He too dug a pond for watering the planted saplings.He too distributes tree saplings among the locals and requests them to plant trees and take care of them.
The interesting point is he does all this without financial support from anybody. He spends all his meager income this way and thus fails to repair or renovate his house, stated Nakula Charan Behera, a fellow villager.
"Rapid urbanisation along with plying of vehicles has affected the environment adversely. Air pollution has reached an alarming level which has proved hazardous for both human beings and animals. So we need to save the environment by planting trees," said Lenka.
While the State Government and Central Government have been encouraging to plant tree and to convert unused land into mini forest by providing financial assistance in several projects and schemes, but Lenka has not got any support as yet.
Though in 2017 he had urged the district administration and also in 2018 the Chief Minister seeking some financial assistance for the noble job, but in vain. On the contrary, he was forced to deposit money as fine to the Aul tehsil for planting trees at a Government land.
This is purely unfortunate to fine a nature lover for planting trees, said Sarpanch of Chandiagadi GP Sanatan Sahu.
Meanwhile, the members of Shri Jagannath Charitable Trust led by its president Daman Kumar Mohanty on Wednesday constructed an asbestos house for him.