SAVE MY BURSERA TREES! TATAGUNI ESTATE CRIES

BURSERA TREE IN THE TATAGUNI ESTATE ON KANAKAPURA MAIN ROAD, BANGALORE

                             
       The highways of Bangalore and the areas surrounding them have witnessed tremendous developments over the years. Industries, educational institutions mushrooming at a rapid pace, small and big apartments providing housing to the constantly growing population are the signs of rapid urbanization. But, along with development there has also been a rapid decrease in the vegetation. 

ENVIRONMENTALIST US MOINUDDIN

One such highway that still boasts of good amount of greenery is National Highway-209 or Kanakapura road .On this green and scenic road about 20 kilometers from Bangalore lies Tataguni estate, once owned by the popular film actress of yesteryears,  Devika Rani and her Russian painter husband Svetoslav Roerich. Stretching across 457 acres, this plantation is a home to the perfumed Bursera trees also called Linaloe. These trees are a native of Mexico.  Large number of Parrots, Peacocks, Jackals, Rabbits and many species of birds inhabit this estate. It is also a trial for elephants from Bannerghatta. Bursera trees easily grow in rocky soil with less rainfall and reach a height of 6 to 7.5 meters. The plants start shedding leaves during November and are completely bare of foliage till March and by April new leaves along with buds appear. Berries start setting by May and mature by July and August, and then they are harvested, dried and dehusked to extract oil from the husk. Almost all part of the tree contain aroma.  The oil which is extracted from these trees is used in perfumes, cosmetics and perfumed soaps. 

                           When the couple died this plantation was taken over by the state government, and they had planned to set up a museum and a cultural centre for preserving the belongings of the couple and also the paintings of Roerich. But, over the years the condition of the plantation has become worse. Almost half of the 60,000 Bursera trees have disappeared, either due to poor maintenance or have been cut by the villagers to be utilized as fire wood. In addition to the Bursera trees,  the plantation holds a 11 acre lake .This beautiful plantation is a pride of Bangalore and can be considered as the next major lung space  other than Lal Bagh and Cubbon Park. If the Government doesn't take proper action to protect the vast reserve of these unique trees, the remaining Bursera trees may disappear from our sight and our mind.  

                                                                         US Moinuddin

                      Author, Educationist, Motivational Speaker and Environmentalist

MAGNIFIQUE ENGLISH SCHOOL STUDENTS HOLD A RALLY TO SUPPORT ‘ONE TREE BY ONE PERSON’

STUDENTS OF MAGNIFIQUE ENGLISH SCHOOL SUPPORTING ONE TREE BY ONE PERSON

   Bangalore:  Students of Magnifique English School held a rally in support of ‘One Tree by One Person’ on the World Environment Day on June 5. The students screaming ‘One Tree by One Person’ marched across the roads and streets of Minhajnagar, JHBCS Layout and the surrounding localities attracting the attention of a large number of people.

Environmentalist US Moinuddin who had participated in the rally said, “Every day the support for the movement ‘One Tree by One Person’ is growing, students across many schools and colleges are voluntarily supporting the cause. Thousands of people in many cities have taken a pledge to support the movement by planting trees.”

ENVIRONMENTALIST US MOINUDDIN WITH THE STUDENTS OF MAGNIFIQUE ENGLISH SCHOOL

   At the end of the rally some students also interacted with the public, informing them about the importance of trees for our survival and requested them to support the movement for which many readily accepted.

US MOINUDDIN'S GREEN REVOLUTION

ENVIRONMENTALIST US MOINUDDIN WITH SCHOOL CHILDREN

                                       

     Bangalore: One Tree by One Person, a revolutionary movement to make India greener was introduced by environmentalist US Moinuddin almost a decade ago. The agenda of this movement is to encourage tree planting and educate the masses about the role of trees in our ecosystem.

  Everybody loves trees, but most of them do not make an effort to plant them as they get engrossed in their day-to-day activities. To make tree planting more realistic and easier, US Moinuddin began to promote the idea of One Tree by One person, according to which a person is required to plant at least one sapling during their lifetime and take care of it. If the population of Bangalore is 85 lakhs and every resident takes an initiative of planting one sapling, then the city will have 85 lakh trees in addition to the trees that already exist. If every Indian takes an initiative of planting a sapling, then there would be 122 crore trees. This movement is attracting people of all age groups and thousands of people across schools, colleges, offices, housewives have already taken a pledge to plant trees and make our environment healthy and beautiful. US Moinuddin has been constantly meeting people and encouraging them to support this campaign where one can witness a Greener India and a Greener Earth. To create awareness about the cause US Moinuddin had directed a drama that took place on trees during the 2011, world environment day.

One Tree by One Person is also inspiring people in other countries. With this movement the deserts can become green, the barren lands can become productive, the temperature in the cities will decrease, the trees will attract rain replenishing the decreasing water table. This is one campaign that will truly make the Earth a greener place to live in.