Rooting Sustainability: Bengal’s Drive to Boost Canopy Cover
As West Bengal wraps up its annual Aranya Saptah (Forest Week) celebrations, one of India’s premier industry chambers is stepping onto the field to help replenish the state’s shrinking green canopy.
ASSOCHAM East has officially partnered with the West Bengal Forest Department to plant 50,000 native tree saplings across the state by March 31, 2027. The agreement aligns with the state’s Ekti Gaach, Maayer Naame! (“A Tree in the Name of Mother”) drive—a local adaptation of the national Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam initiative encouraging citizens and businesses to honor their mothers by planting trees.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed in Kolkata by Sardar Simarpreet Singh, Co-Chairman of the ASSOCHAM Higher Education Council (East), and Shri Raju Das, IFS, representing the state’s Forest Department.
Industry Footing the Bill, Forest Dept Supplying the Science
Unlike routine corporate greenwashing exercises, this initiative puts clear accountability and funding on the table. ASSOCHAM East will fund the entire drive out of its own pocket, while the Forest Department will handle the technical ground support.
Here is how the collaboration will work in practice:
- Site Selection & Species Choice: Forest officials will identify suitable plots across urban and rural zones and select climate-resilient native species that offer long-term ecological benefits rather than quick visual fixes.
- Nursery Logistics: The department will supply healthy saplings directly through its network of government nurseries.
- Sustained Care: Both parties will coordinate on execution to ensure high sapling survival rates—a critical step often missed in large-scale planting drives.
“Environmental sustainability isn’t something we can just outsource to the government,” said Sardar Simarpreet Singh following the signing. “Through this initiative, industry leaders are taking direct responsibility to help build a greener, healthier West Bengal.”
A Timely Boost for West Bengal’s Afforestation Goals
The partnership comes at a vital juncture. The state government launched a massive weeklong campaign during Aranya Saptah 2026, setting an ambitious target to plant over 1.1 crore saplings statewide to combat forest degradation and improve canopy cover.
By bringing private industry, technical forest experts, and local communities into the fold, the initiative aims to transform seasonal tree-planting photo-ops into a structured, long-term ecological restoration effort.
Watch DD Bangla’s coverage of the ‘Ek Ped Maa Ke Naam’ drive in Kolkata to see how local institutions and communities across West Bengal are taking part in this state-wide afforestation campaign.