JAMMU: Tree Talk to interpret natural heritage of flora and fauna in the natural surroundings of Manda Deer Park Jammu was on Sunday hosted as 359th green session with visiting Forest Range Officer trainees hailing from Tripura and Karnataka states presently undergoing professional training at Uttarakhand Forest Training Academy Haldwani Uttarakhand.
Roshan Jaggi, CCF Wildlife, while interacting with trainees and tree talk enthusiasts, traced the foundation and history of nature reverence and management of forests and wildlife as practiced by Aryans , Tribals, Ashoka the great, Kadamba dynasty, Mughals, Dogra rulers and Britishers like Brandis, WH Lovegrove and H.L Wright with shift from reverence to exploitation thereby depleting forest resources during colonial era to the extent that in 1990 Supreme Court had to intervene in famous T Godavarman case to ban green felling and control forest land diversion through Forest Conservation Act as forests serving as life and economy support system and needed more judicious exploitation of natural resources around.
O.P Sharma, Tree Talk crusader while taking a round of Manda Park, highlighted that soils, tree roots, trunk barks, insects, birds, animals and microbes, all thrive in a well knit forest or wetland ecosystem. He said that conserving fragile wildlife habitats to regulate drinking water supply, farmland productivity, human livelihoods, local health traditions and climate change extremes, all stakeholders need to understand habitat ecology, intricacies of food web, role of microbes in forest health, need to phase out agrochemicals, proper disposal of solid waste including non-biodegradable plastics and adopting eco-friendly age-old practices to add value to resources stored in forests and wetlands.
Dr Salim ul Haq talked about magnificence of wildlife in Ladakh.
Sunit Singh Chauhan presented Bhadarwahi and Garhwali songs linked to spring grandeur of wild flowers and fruits like Burans, Cheu, Hadhdull, Kafal, Hinsalu, Timoi to spread message of biodiversity conservation in the interest of human prosperity.
Botanist Lakhan Pal, Zoologist Shalini Aryan, forest expert Amit Sharma, BHU scholar Taslima Sheikh, Retd BDO Kurhan and Forest trainees also spoke on the occasion.