Water resources ministry to plant 10 lakh trees

The ministry of water resources is going to plant 10 lakh trees of various species at the premises of its office, its subordinate bodies, on the banks of canals and other open spaces of different development projects of the Water Development Board. 

The tree plantation programme, taken as a part of the celebration of the Mujib Year, was announced at a press briefing held at the ministry's conference room on Monday.

In this regard, State Minister for Water Resources Zahid Faruk said the prime minister has issued a directive to increase the country's total forest area to 25 percent. In compliance with that, 10 lakh trees will be planted in around 2,500km area covering 59 divisions of the Water Development Board.

"We, along with local administrations, will supervise the tree plantation programme in those districts in two phases – first on August 11-14 and second on August 28-30," he added. 

Mentioning the importance of tree plantation, the junior minister said a tree in its lifetime can prevent soil erosion worth at least Tk2.5 lakh.

Coastal areas having trees suffer less damage from natural disasters, he also said, adding that there is no alternative to tree plantation to make dams sustainable.

Deputy Minister for Water Resources AKM Enamul Haque Shamim and Senior Secretary of the ministry Kabir Bin Anwar also spoke at the press briefing.