Biodiversity park to come up in Bathinda to revive south Punjab’s vanishing tree species
BATHINDA : With a view to reviving the vanishing native tree species of southern Punjab, the state forest department has decided to convert a 3-km-long stretch along the Sirhind canal on the outskirts of Bathinda city into a biodiversity park.
The work on the ‘green lungs project’, as it is called, has begun after the state government approved Rs 50 lakh fund for the initiative that will help create a thick tree cover in the city’s vicinity, said divisional forest officer (DFO) Swaran Singh.
In the first phase, a 1-km stretch with 37-metre width will be developed as a green cover. A total of 65 native tree species will be grown whereas the Nanak Bagichi section will have 36 varieties of medicinal plants. The green belt will also have 10 bamboo species besides conifer, ficus and other native fruit varieties like karonda (black currant), phalsa (blueberry) and sitaphal (custard apple). A butterfly zone will also be developed with dense vegetation of flower-bearing plants like sadabahar, jasmine and chandni etc.
“Trees like vann (salvadora oleides), jand (prosopis cineraria), simbal (bombax), ber (Indian jujube) and mulberry were once commonly found in the semi-arid and arid regions of south Malwa. But these trees with medicinal and commercial value are now rarely spotted. In the absence of enough knowledge, people have switched their liking to ornamental plants or the species not ideal for climatic conditions of the belt,” Swaran Singh said. Vann and jand too are among the vanishing tree species in the region, he added.
“The wood of vann was commonly used for making of charkha. Lightweight and sturdy, the wood was preferred for furniture making. We have some vann trees in Bathinda and adjoining districts but they are dying. Flowering on jand is preferred by apiculturists and they go to Rajasthan where jand groves are found in abundance,” said Singh, whose team’s project concept of the botanical garden was appreciated by the chief minister’s office.
The department has identified the stretch along the canal banks behind its nursery. The vicinity is already home to a variety of fauna such as jungle babbler, peacocks, parrots, and red-wattled lapwing.
Due to official apathy, the area was being used as an unauthorised waste dump by several marriage palaces and banquet halls. “An all-season pathway will be built without using any concrete material and the green belt will be powered by solar energy,” the DFO added.