Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao on Wednesday launched the third phase of "Telanganaku Haritha Haram", in Karimnagar.
It is a government led two-week long plantation drive aimed at increasing the green cover in the state from 24% to 33%.
The government has already claimed the mission to be a success by claiming to have planted 40 crore saplings across the state, out of the target of 230 crore saplings.
The programme involves reviving 2.40 hectares of forests across the state.
Addressing a public meeting at Ambedkar Stadium in Karimnagar, KCR appealed to the people to participate in ‘Haritha Haram’ phase 3, like they did during the Telangana movement.
Appealing to the people of Karimnagar to plant one sapling per head, he said, “We should grow trees like we grow kids. During my next visit to Karimnagar in helicopter, I should be left wondering if it is a city or a forest."
Reiterating his government’s stand on the "all round" development of the state, he said, "Telangana government will never sleep till it is successful in providing irrigation facility to 1 crore acres of agricultural land".
KCR had participated last year as well in the Haritha Haram campaign which was launched from Nalgonda. He had joined the one lakh green volunteers who planted 1.25 lakh saplings on the 165 km Hyderabad-Vijayawada highway.
Unlike last year though, when the Baahubali team had also turned up to add some star power to the event, this year’s programme seems to have been rather muted.
The Minister of Forests, Jogu Ramanna, had earlier said the last two phases were successful as they managed to ensure the survival of 67% of the 48 crore trees that were planted. He added that for the third phase, the government was looking at 100% survival of the saplings.