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Dhaka South City Corporation (DSCC) will organise tree plantation programmes every day in different parts of the city as part of efforts to reduce air pollution, restore the natural environment and make Dhaka more liveable.
DSCC Administrator Abdus Salam announced the initiative on Monday while speaking as the chief guest at a tree plantation and sapling distribution programme at Motijheel Government Boys’ High School.
The programme, organised by the DSCC in collaboration with Environment Development Organisation-Bangladesh, featured the distribution of fruit-bearing, timber and medicinal saplings among students and guardians. It was held as part of Prime Minister Tarique Rahman’s priority initiatives for environmental conservation and combating climate change.
“Dhaka city no longer has the greenery it once had. Today, Dhaka ranks among the cities with the highest levels of air pollution in the world, which is not desirable for any of us,” Salam said.
He warned that failure to maintain a clean and healthy environment could lead to the spread of various diseases and stressed that increasing tree coverage was essential to protecting nature and reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
Recalling his days as a student at the school, Salam said he remembered seeing beautiful gardens around the campus that no longer exist.
“Just as the Sundarbans protects Bangladesh as a natural shield during storms and cyclones, trees also keep us alive by providing oxygen,” he said.
Salam urged students to become actively involved in environmental protection, saying they would form the country’s future leadership.
“I urge every student to plant at least one tree at home, on the rooftop or in a tub,” he said.
Dhaka-7 MP Hamidur Rahman Hamid and acting headteacher of Motijheel Government Boys’ High School Tahmina Yasmin attended the event as special guests. Prof Syeda Fatema Salam, president of Environment Development Organisation-Bangladesh, chaired the programme.
At the end of the event, the guests planted saplings on the school premises and distributed different varieties of fruit-bearing, timber and medicinal plants among students and guardians.
