Participants at the painting competition at Patna zoo on Tuesday. Picture by Ashok Sinha

About 1,000 students on Tuesday wielded their paintbrush as an armour to protect the environment from further damage and promote the green cause.

The occasion was an on-spot painting competition at Patna zoo. The event was organised by Bihar State Pollution Control Board on the occasion of International Day for Biological Diversity. Children from all the 38 districts of Bihar participated in the competition. This was the seventh edition of the competition.

“When we started this competition in 2006, the participation was not much in terms of numbers. There used to be around 100-200 students. Today (Tuesday), about 1,000 children participated in this painting competition, which is an achievement in itself,” said Nand Kumar, assistant environment engineer, pollution board.

Kumar said students from classes I to X participated in this competition in five different groups. “We have not charged any money for registration. Our main aim is to spread awareness on biodiversity conservation through this event,” Kumar said. The prize distribution ceremony will be held on June 5, Kumar added.