Excelsior Correspondent
KATRA, Sept 29: Besides focussing on continuously enlarging and improving facilities for the visiting pilgrims, the Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Shrine Board has been devoting high attention towards the implementation of various initiatives for promoting the welfare of the people.
Among the various initiatives taken by the Shrine Board, Governor N. N. Vohra, Chairman of the Shrine Board, has taken a series of decisions to extend green cover in the entire Trikuta Hills and conserving the environment of the entire shrine area. Under this initiative, the Board has taken up large scale plantation of varied indigenous species of plants, creepers, soil binders and flowering trees and bushes.
In this context, on the directions of Governor, a hi-tech nursery has been established by the Board at Kunia, Panthal, to generate high quality planting materials for plantation in the shrine area. This nursery is rearing indigenous species of plants which are compatible with the local climatic conditions and is striving, progressively, for providing green cover in the Trikuta Hills.
This high-tech nursery, which is progressively increasing its capacity for producing quality planting material, is being visited by groups of students and trainee officers from the Forest Training Institutions of various States as well as the Indira Gandhi National Forest Academy Dehradun.
Consequent to a recent review with J. K. Singh, CEO, and Dr. M. K. Kumar, Additional CEO, Governor N. N. Vohra, has directed urgent action to prepare a Detailed Project Report for Phase-II of the nursery and the process of land leveling has already started. Besides, on the directions of the Governor, time bound work is being done to plant seasonal flowers and ornamental plants for beautifying the upcoming Tarakote Marg and other areas visited by the pilgrims.
The salient features of this nursery are that it has an automatic hi-tech mist chamber where temperature and aeration are controlled to provide suitable conditions for round the year propagation and growth of plants. It has two poly-greenhouses and one naturally ventilated poly-green house to provide a protected environment for cultivation of quality planting material. For ensuring the reusability of components, light weight and re-usable root trainer based ports of 150 cc and 300 cc along with weightless growing media are being used. An advanced fogging system has also been adopted for watering the nursery plantlets.
The nursery has a Nature Interpretation Centre for facilitation of visitors. An added advantage is that the nursery has a perennial source of water in the form of a spring which has been further complemented by creating 3 underground water storage tanks having a capacity of 1.40 lakh litres. Besides, the high value medicinal plants like virginia ciliata, quercus species, rhododendron, rose merry, etc are displayed for visitors at the hi- tech chamber of the Nursery.
This state-of-the-art mist chamber is producing 25,000-30,000 plants per season while the extensive naturally ventilated poly- greenhouses produce about 1.4 lakh plants and seedlings every season.
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