A ‘green reward’ from the House of Lords, London, arrived at a hut in Bankura’s Bishnupur silently last evening. But it was for the loud efforts of a group of women – mostly housewives – in this temple town, and has encouraged the group no end.
Photo:SNS
A ‘green reward’ from the House of Lords, London, arrived at a hut in Bankura’s Bishnupur silently last evening. But it was for the loud efforts of a group of women – mostly housewives – in this temple town, and has encouraged the group no end.
‘My Dear Trees & Wilds’, an organisation run by Bishnupur women dedicated to the protection of environment and wildlife, has been conferred the ‘Green Apple Environment Award 2025’ by The Green Organisation, United Kingdom, for its project titled ‘Catch rain for a water-sustainable India’ that was kicked off five years ago in the districts of South Bengal.
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The organisation mainly works on spreading awareness for water conservation and conducts the Environmental Music Festival each year, besides holding sustained campaigns backed by folk singers. “We compose songs, sing them in groups, prepare and stage dramas and dance programnes for awareness of water conservation, as water in these districts is more precious than jewellery,” narrated the chairpersons of the organisation Jharna Ganguly and Sangeeta Biswas.
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The team has composed and performed 107 songs, 17 dance-dramas and 11 one-wall dramas, besides producing a documentary on environment protection. “We are extrememly happy that our perseverance and dedication has paid off with this recognition,” said Jharna Ganguly.
The award mailed by its founder Roger Wolens on 17 November was received yesterday evening by the “office” of My Dear Trees & Wilds, located in a hut-like structure in the town. This follows an award function held recently at the House of Lords, Palace of Westminster. The award was launched in 1994 as recognition for the promotion of environmental best practices around the world, as explained by a note from Wolens accompanying the award.
Members of the organisation, like Malini Roy, Anita Samaddar, Sharmistha Chakraborty, Bharati Banerjee, among others, said: “The way global warming has started taking a toll on the environment, it seems we may already be too late to tackle the threat of water scarcity.”
The rainwater harvesting projects stress more on rooftop collection of water, especially during the monsoon season. The Bishnupur women, however, chose to prioritise the surface run-off management method that includes capturing and storing rainwater for common uses like gardening, domestic washing and even to replenish groundwater, which the Bengal government’s ‘Jal Dharo-Jal Bharo’ and the Centre’s ‘Jal Shakti Abhiyan’ have also inspired extensively.
Drought-prone Bankura, incidentally, has started implementing rainwater harvesting as a critical measure to combat water scarcity under Jal Dharo-Jal Bharo scheme since 2012, besides utilising Central Ground Water Board’s scientifically-designed groundwater recharge structures.
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