Territorial Army’s Greening Efforts in the Himalayas
22 Nov, 2001 · 640
Wg Cdr NK Pant describes the contribution of the territorial army in ecological conservation in India
During the past decades, there has been unchecked commercial exploitation of forest and mineral wealth by unscrupulous elements in the
Himalayas
resulting in denudation. The bare hillsides have also lead to soil erosion, frequent landslides, lowering of water table, decrease in rain and snow fall and related climatic changes in the region.
Doon
Valley
and Aglar watershed in Tehri district.
Rajaji
National Park
where the TA personnel planted nearly 320,000 saplings in 700 hectares. In addition, they built 207 rock filled check dams and dug contour trenches to stop soil erosion. They also constructed and maintained 69 kilometre of tracks in the area.
Dehra Dun
too was visible. The city started getting more rain during the monsoons.
In the early eighties environment conscious citizens of the Doon Valley discovered that the mountain slopes of Mussoorie overlooking Dehra Dun were stripped of their tree cover and rocks by mining contractors. This indiscriminate large-scale stone quarrying created craters on hill sides causing severe soil erosion and landslides. Other areas in the vicinity from where the tree cover had disappeared were – the Mohand forest ranges in the Shivalik hills south of the
The restoration task of these ecologically devastated areas, particularly the Mussoorie slopes, required urgent attention due to the orders of the Supreme Court. As this was beyond the competence of the civilian agencies, the government decided to entrust this responsibility to the Army. This led to the raising of 127 Infantry Battalion of the Territorial Army (TA) as a dedicated Ecological Task Force affiliated to the Gahwal Rifles. Its soldiers are drawn from the ex-servicemen from the Garhwal and Kumaon hills based on the concept of home and hearth.
The unit was first assigned the task of aforestation in the Mohand area of the Shivaliks near the
After having proved its worth, the TA battalion moved to the Mussoorie mountains. Their immediate task was to restore the badly ravaged ecological balance by undertaking aforestation and soil conservation. To achieve this, they constructed 4608 check dams and reclaimed 23 large stone quarries on 3400 hectares of land in the Kairkuli micro-catchment area on the southern slopes of the Mussoorie hills. It took the unit almost a decade to accomplish this assignment by planting the saplings, saving and nursing them till they grew into small trees capable of looking after themselves. After this task was accomplished in 1994, Mussoorie regained its natural grandeur. The hill resort had its first snowfall in 1997 after a long gap of 17 years. The fallout on
Presently this dedicated group of TA personnel is engaged in the ambitious ecological reconstruction project of the Aglar watershed, entrusted to them in 1994 immediately after they successfully completed their difficult assignment on the Mussoorie slopes. They have been given a long span of 13 years to attain the greening objective in this watershed of the Aglar river, a tributary of the Yamuna. This hill area is barren due to ceaseless tree cutting and fodder collection. Moreover, located as it is on the southern slopes, the watershed receives scanty rainfall. The unit has so far planted 2,200,000 saplings which include a large number of fruit bearing trees in 2800 hectares of land. Besides, the jawans have so far constructed 56 check dams and repaired the roads and tracks connecting various hamlets in the area. The TA unit is also actively involved in mass awareness programmes in the project area and has secured the willing and voluntary cooperation from the villagers for protecting the plantations. Consequently, the survival rate during the preceding year was as high as 95 percent. Even during periods of drought, this has not fallen below 70 percent due to continuous care and supervision.
Similar ecological task force units have been at work in
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