Speakers at a profit distribution ceremony here have said tree plantation always brings economic self-reliance besides improving environment to protect the ecology retarding the desertification process.
They stressed for massive tree plantation, involving the people from all walks of life including women, to raise forest area up to 25 per cent for protecting Bangladesh from alarming consequences and catastrophes of climate change.
Rangpur Zila Parishad organised the ceremony at its auditorium on Wednesday for distributing cheques of Taka 15.50 lakh as tree plantation profits under its participatory social forestation programme among 140 members of seven groups of Pirganj and Kawnia upazilas.
The money was distributed among the beneficiary poor and distressed people of the two upazilas as they looked after a number of trees for years together under the programme.
Administrator of Rangpur Zila Parishad and Acting President of district Awami League Mamtaz Uddin Ahmed attended the ceremony and distributed cheques as the chief guest.
With Zila Parishad Secretary Arzoo Ara Begum in the chair, its Executive Engineer Ahsan Ullah, Vice-chairman of Pirganj upazila parishad Monayem Sarker Manu and Editor of the Daily Poribesh AKM Fazlul Haque addressed as special guests.
Congratulating the cheque recipient beneficiaries, the speakers said tree plantation must be turned into a vigorous social movement for building a safer planet through improving environment and biodiversity amid frightening climate change threat.
The chief guest called upon the beneficiary men and women for properly taking care of the planted saplings in earning better profits in future to change their fate and improve the degrading environment under changed climatic conditions.
He said the present government has taken massive tree plantation programme to protect the ecology retarding desertification process to save innumerable living species including animals, birds, insects, aqua animals, including fishes, from extinction.
He called upon everyone to plant saplings of wood, fruit and medicinal trees around their homesteads or on any open space or roadsides to improve ecology, environment and bio-diversity and reap economic benefits.
