Climate change is real, and signs are around us. Prithvi and our environment is a legacy that we should pass for the next generations – if not improved, at least in our lifetime, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah said that he inaugurated the Wan Festival 2025 ceremony organized by Jammu and Kashmir Forest Department at Abhinav Theater.
Let’s find happiness in planting trees and giving gifts to plants, they commented, asked people to convert the festival into a lively people’s movement.
He joined Javed Ahmed Rana, Jal Shakti, Forest, Ecology and Minister of Environment and Tribal Affairs; Advisor to the Chief Minister, Nasir Aslam Wani; Commissioner and Secretary of the Government, Forest Department, Ecology and Environment Department, Sheetal Nanda; Secretary Tribal Affairs, Prasanna Ramaswamy ji; Major main patrons of forests; DDC member (DANSAL) Shamima Begum; In addition to senior officials of various departments.
The program was marked by extensive community participation, which included tribal members, students and citizens in the central region.
Chief Minister Omar Abdullah emphasized that today our works will result in results. There is a need to have a check on greed; Only our needs should be met. Uncontrolled forest harvesting should be stopped. Real afforesting efforts are necessary to produce results, not only figures. He said that development is a need, but it should be prudent. There should be a balance, development with honest concern for the environment. To uproot each tree, one hundred must be planted.
Confirming the resolution of the government, the Chief Minister said that the administration will ensure the benefits of the Forest Rights Act and the minor forest produce reaches every intended beneficiary. Addressing the youth and tribal communities, they celebrated the permanent value of trees and the importance of collective leadership.
Minister of Water Power, Forest, Ecology and Environment and Tribal Affairs, Javed Ahmed Rana recognized the unique responsibility of tribal population in defense of the forests. He emphasized that the Department of Tribal Affairs should become a nodal agency to implement the Forest Rights Act. The minister took the initiative of the government for tribal welfare, in which special attention was paid to water conservation in Kandi areas through check dams, rainwater harvesting and peroling pits. He also highlighted the opportunities for youth-centered employment under the Van Dhan Yojana and talked about the upcoming permanent tourism schemes, such as the current being developed, such as eco trek activities. Referring to the overall empowerment, he referred to the Dharti Aba Janjati Village Utkarash Abhiyan, under which it is proposed to support the guarantee for tribal communities to include many projects, infrastructure and government’s saturation.
The advisor of the Chief Minister, Nasir Aslam Wani reflected that the forest is not just resources – they are guardians who breathe us to heat their homes, feed our cattle, fodder to feed our cattle, wood to make our shelters, and to live in the air. He urged people to re -connect with centuries -old traditions of planting trees, which was once an integral part of rituals. These were not just customs, they noted, but the deepest inherent work of gratitude and responsibility towards nature. The government, he assured, will make every effort to revive these traditions and ensure that the forests themselves are maintained and preserved along with the rights of the forest dwellers. Development matters, but never at the cost of nature, he said.
In this ceremony, Chief Minister Omar Abdullah was handed over individuals and organizations to the newly selected candidates in the Forest Department and for their environmental contribution.
