The people of Kerala, young and old, should work together with the government for the success of Haritha Keralam mission, a development initiative of the State government, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has said.
He was speaking after the State-level inauguration of Haritha Keralam mission at the Kalatharakkal paddy fields, near Neyyattinkara, here on Thursday.
The multidimensional development project focuses on sanitation, water conservation, environmental protection, and paddy cultivation. The Chief Minister, along with singer K.J. Yesudas, the mission ambassador, and actor Manju Warrier, handed over to farm workers the paddy to be transplanted in the fields which has been lying fallow till last year.
“This model of bringing fallow land under cultivation has to be followed everywhere. We once used to do cultivation not just in the paddy fields, but also in our surroundings. We have to bring all these practices back and revitalise our farm crops. The government will take the initiative to bring the developments happening in the Kerala Agricultural University labs to the farmers. We are also taking effective steps to popularise the cultivation of pesticide-free organic vegetables,” the Chief Minister said.
He said that agriculture, water conservation, and waste management should be made a part of our culture.
“Our State which once had surplus water is now facing a drought situation. We should take efforts to ensure that the rainwater that we get is not lost. We have projects to revitalise water sources and for rainwater harvesting. In the second phase, the aim should be to clean up all rivers and water bodies. Planting of trees is another important goal. There should be ‘haritha’ villages and ‘haritha’ campuses,” he said.
Yesudas sang the ‘Harithakerala geetham,’ penned by poet Prabha Varma.
“If all of us come together to take up farming, we can have a healthy citizenry in Kerala,” he said. Manju Warrier, who was the chief guest, said the recent awareness of pesticide-filled vegetables, which has led to the spread of organic farming across the State, is an inspiring development. Minister for Cooperation Kadakampally Surendran presided over the function. The Chief Minister also inaugurated the renovation of a pond.
