SHILLONG: Deputy Chief Minister in charge of Soil and Water Conservation, Rowell Lyngdoh, has called upon the people of Sohra to actively participate in the Sohra Ecological Project to restore the beauty and greenery of the ‘wettest place on earth’.
“Despite receiving the highest amount of rainfall, Sohra goes totally dry as winter season arrives. We need to arrest this unusual trend by trying to retain the water with the plantation of more trees,” Lyngdoh said after inaugurating the drinking water catchment protection work at Khliehshnong, Sohra, on Wednesday.
According to Lyngdoh, the Planning Commission had earmarked a total amount of Rs 86 crore for various projects to be implemented in the next six years in Sohra.
To address the water scarcity problem at Sohra the Government, through this proposed programme, is planning to take up a large number of projects to encourage people to go for rain water harvesting, the Minister said, adding that, “People can utilize the rain water during the dry winter season.”
Lyngdoh said that rainwater harvesting has been included as a component of the Ecological Project in view of the inability to retain the rain water which is the only form of precipitation in the State.
Additional Chief Secretary PBO Warjri informed that this project aims to improve the ecology and environment of Sohra plateau by restoring degraded land, while adding that it also aims at minimizing human activities detrimental to the environment.
The Soil and Water Conservation Department has appealed the residents to refrain from rearing goats for the next few years.
“We are giving them options of piggery and tailoring besides other activities and we are even paying Rs 14,000 per pig,” the Additional Chief Secretary said, while adding that there would also be a livelihood programme to encourage the villagers to take up poultry and piggery.
Warjri said that the department has already conducted detailed study in 45 villages, right from Mawkdok to Laitkynsew, to understand the ground reality so that the masses would be benefited from the proposed projects.
A senior official informed that the programme, besides improving the greenery of Sohra, is also attempting to boost the horticulture sector. “In the first year fifty hectares of land was utilized for citrus fruits while 35 hectares of land was used for temperate fruits,” the official said.
Although 1172500 seedlings, mostly indigenous, were planted in the first year to replenish the lost greenery of Sohra, the official informed, adding that the department has decided to plant 1298750 seedlings in the second year.
Meanwhile, talking to The Shillong Times here on Wednesday, Soil and Water Conservation Director, D Langstieh, while claiming that the project is making good progress, informed that 748000 seedlings will be planted in the third year. Maintenance of the plantations would occupy the next two years.
As part of the project, the Department has roped in school children and members of the public as Barefoot Environment Educators (BEES) who are being paid monthly remuneration of Rs 4000 to take care of the environment. The idea of roping in students is to ensure that children would get the opportunity to learn about the importance of preserving the greenery.
The Sohra Ecological Project was sanctioned by the Centre in 2010-11 under the Special Plan Assistance with the objective of enhancing the soil moisture, identification of critical areas for immediate restoration of degraded soil and amelioration under scarcity during drier months.
Earlier, the Deputy Chief Minister inaugurated a Recreation Children’s Park at Mawkdok as a component of the Project.