Wednesday 15 June 2016


                                               Free Plant Distribution Drive

A free Plant distribution drive was carried out during the Reunion event at Somaiya College, Vidyavihar on 22nd and 23rd January 2016. The saplings of “Ocimum tenuiflorum” commonly known as tulsi plant were distributed. The plant is well known for its medicinal properties and to purify the indoor air quality of households. Owing to these properties people were encouraged to plant and take care of the sapling. Suggestions for healthy growth of the plants were also given. This ultimately helps in aiding to increase a little bit of the greenery in the planet. 

There was also a model demonstration of a “sustainable building” which explained the various technologies that can make urban environment eco-friendly without compromising on the comforts. Technologies like rain water harvesting, vermicomposting, Solar panels and algal panels that address problems like water scarcity, solid waste, and, high electricity usage. The processes were explained in detail and encouraged the young crowd to learn about eco-friendly ways of living. 


People were also encouraged to participate in various activities for environmental causes conducted by green health foundation. More than 500 people volunteered to support which exclaims the grand success of the event.

Siddhika Mohan  
Green Health Foundation
greenhealth2015@gmail.com
http://greenhealthfoundation.in/index.html

The scared droplet

ज्योंनिकलकरबादलोंकीगोदसे।

थीअभीएकबूँदकुछआगेबढ़ी।

सोचनेफिरफिरयहीजीमेंलगी।

आहक्योंघरछोड़करमैंयोंबढ़ी।


This is India.  Always personifies. Even if it’s a small drop of water pouring from the clouds, like me! I still remember the old days, leaving the clouds. I cherish the memories of being poured upon the saintly land of India.Yes, as the poet Hariaudh says in the above lines…I was always scared to leave my cloud; but whenever it used to be India, I was never scared. Sometimes I landed in the holy kamandal of a sadhu, being sought for as a symbol to reach heaven,sometimes in the play of some very unique fauna. Sometimes, I was used to wash the feet of an elder, sometimes in making of a sweet served outside a temple. There was a great sense and philosophy to respect water, every single drop! It always ended up water not getting wasted in vain.
Today is not the same. Today again I am on my way to pour down to this city called Mumbai in India. I no longer feel the same sense of respect. Earlier, to get water to support their family, humans used to have a very hard time. They had to either dig a well, or rely and share from natural sources. There used to be pots on the heads and walking over long distances.This inaccessibility to the sources made the humans humble about getting water, avoiding wastage. They understood that Water was for all the living creatures and it was simply borrowed by humans. This made them sensitive to plants and animals alike.
Things are not the same in the present scenario. Today Water is just something which the humans buy with money. This buying leads to sense of ownership, which ends up in misuse.
As I am falling from the sky, I know what will happen to me. It is all predictable! I will land up in some tank which will take me to some house. The house will use me in the shower, a fancy way to bath! If they would have used the Tap and bucket instead, it would have saved me and lots of my friends from misuse. And then I will inevitably go to the drain, a drain with so much of dirt and chemicals that no process in the human reach are able to clean me completely. Laden with all these chemicals, I reach in the sea. And here comes a bigger problem… the sea has much more chemicals dumped into. I remember the days when the sea used to be happy and the aquatic flora and fauna used to feel lively with arrival of me and my friends, because we brought a lot of Oxygen and Life for them. Today, we are so much laden with chemicals, that we are no longer able to carry enough oxygen for the sea. This has lead into poisoning of the sea and its inhabitants. Now the sea is sad. It has a layer of oils and chemicals, which prevent our immediate evaporation. And when we evaporate… many times some ugly chemical tags along with us and next time we rain as acid… a disaster to all living ones!
Another scenario which happens with us these days is landing up in a bottle of plastic. It is not much comforting to be inside a cage of plastic which takes ages to degrade. Now comes the work of the humans who buy us with a sense of ownership. The irony is, they will buy us, but won’t finish the entire bottle. They will just throw us in a dustbin, half used, right next to a dying plant and a thirsty stray dog! I will never understand why will the humans not help the other living beings? They being the most smart and strong living beings… isn’t it their responsibility to safeguard all the weaker beings around?

I feel the Humans are being overwhelmed. The technology they have got gives them power and they still do not know how to use it correctly. But that can never serve as an excuse. What the humans need to do is realize their responsibility to safeguard the nature. They need to appreciate the effort the nature takes to deliver its resources to them without complaints. I don’t know if the humans can hear me or not… but if humans scare a drop like me… the day will not be far when we will collectively decide not to arrive at earth all together. Humans must realize it.


Article contributed by:
Nishchal Dwivedi
A Young nature sensitive science enthusiast who believes in logically understanding the environment and communicating it simply to everyone around him with help of articles, cartoons and contribution in various blogs.
He is an explorer of Ornithology and Biodiversity. He implements his knowledge in physics in understanding these varied branches of Environment.
contact:avid.writer.writes@gmail.com

Graphics contributed by:
Hrishikesh Badrike
Green Health Foundation
contact: greenhealth2015@gmail.com