As part of the "Rispana se Rishiparna" mission aimed at facilitating the revival of the Rispana river in Dehradun, the State government will start concrete and serious efforts in the near future with public participation.
The chief minister Trivendra Singh Rawat held a meeting on Thursday with the Eco Task Force 127 Garhwal Rifles commanding officer Hariraj Singh Rana and the Uttarakhand Science Education and Research Centre (USERC) director Professor Durgesh Pant along with other officials concerned to discuss the revival of the Rispana river and the cultivation of walnuts and fruits in the mountainous regions of the state.
Speaking at the meeting, the chief minister said that reviving the Rispana River is one of the top priorities of the state government. The state government will ensure adequate fund allocation for this purpose.
Addressing the officers of the Eco Task Force, the chief minister opined that the revival of the Rispana river requires establishment of an independent unit, plantation of trees under the mission and the construction of check dams so that water conservation can be achieved along with the facilitation of recharging of the ground water level.
Stressing on the active and effective participation of the public, the chief minister said that the revival of the Rispana river will have to be taken up as a major public campaign. In the near future, a website should also be launched with the aim of ensuring public involvement and other aspects related to the revival of the Rispana.
Regarding the mountainous regions, the chief minister also said that saplings of fruit trees and walnut trees conducive to cultivation in the mountainous regions should be made available to the locals.
The farmers should be encouraged for inter-cropping as much as possible so that a good produce can also be ensured along with facilitating an increase in the income of the farmers.
The Eco Task Force 127 Garhwal Rifles CO Hariraj Singh Rana said that the force had formed the junior ETF in the state. The junior ETF has trained about 1,000 children in tree plantation and water conservation. The force is also working on the revival of Rispana for which the satellite imagery of the river has been completed, he added.