Deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi and secretary of environment and forests department Deepak Kumar at the review meeting in Patna on Thursday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

The environment and forests department will distribute 20 lakh saplings free of cost from August 1 to 9 across the state as a part of Van Mahotsava.

The department intends to make the entire state greener by planting about 1.05 crore saplings through various schemes during the festival —a state government initiative to be celebrated in July and August.

The forests department has planned to plant 1.05 saplings this year, mostly in July and August. Of the 1.05 crore saplings, 20 lakh saplings will be distributed free of cost from August 1 to 9. Around 51 lakh saplings would be planted on the flanks of the roads, river embankments and in forest areas and the rest would be sold.

At a review meeting of the environment and forests department on Thursday, deputy chief minister Sushil Kumar Modi stressed the need for more plantation drives in the state. Divisional forest officers and senior officers of the department attended the meet.

Modi, who also holds the additional charge of the environment and forests department, said: “As part of the Van Mahotsava, around 7,500 saplings will be distributed among the residents of Patna.” He added: “People who want saplings have to send a request to the forests department.”

An individual can get up to five saplings.

Modi said the government would issue notices in newspapers inviting educational institutions, government and private schools, to take part in the plantation drive.

“Such plantation drives were initiated last year too. This year, we will particularly see the educational institutions give in writing that they would maintain the plants for at least three years,” the deputy chief minister said, adding that free saplings were distributed among educational institutions last year. The institutions had, however, failed to maintain them.

He said while distributing the saplings among educational institutions, it would be taken into account that the schools have boundary walls.

During the Van Mahotsava, chief minister Nitish Kumar and state cabinet ministers would celebrate Raksha Bandhan by tying rakhis around trees. Raksha Bandhan is on August 2. On the occasion of Earth Day on August 9, high school students will take oaths to “save the environment”. The students will participate in poster designing and painting competitions to create awareness about the environment.