People In This Bihar Village Have Joined Hands To Turn Barren Land Into Thick Forest
Harpur Bochaha is a quaint little village in Bihar¡¯s Samastipur district. It may not be known for many things, but the residents have joined hands to put it on the map for a very important reason.
In a bid to increase the village¡¯s green cover, people have joined hands to make sustainable changes in the place they stay, The village which was once ravaged by floods and droughts is now growing greener by the day.
According to an IANS report, Prem Shankar Singh, head of the village Panchayat, is the man responsible for leading this transformation.
"Our village had been losing its trees very fast during to recurring floods and drought. When I first became the Panchayat head in 2001, there were a few trees left here. It was worse for the farmers who found it hard to cultivate as the village turned into a waste land," Mr Singh said.
Three large ponds were dug to supply water to 3,000 acres of land. Next, a 3-km-long canal was constructed to get water to the fields. The village was given the 'Panchayat Empowerment award' as an appreciation for its reforestation efforts.
"The government cannot do everything. Public participation is essential for development. This Panchayat is proof that milestones can be achieved by taking the first step. The village has proved that nothing is impossible when people work together," said Ganga Sagar Singh, Block Development Officer of Vidyapati Nagar to IANS
While the fruit trees provide the villagers an extra income, fish and poultry farming has also been initiated on 10 acres of waste land, to supplement it.
