Amid lockdown Environmentalist Jeeth Milan Roche tries to give green cover to Pacchnady dumping yard

Mangaluru: The Covid-19 pandemic has brought several activities to a grinding halt. But it has not been able to stop Jeeth Milan Roche, a hard-working activist of the National Environment Care Foundation (NECF) from fulfilling his commitment to the environment by planting hundreds of trees.

Jeeth Milan Roche who has planted thousands of saplings across Dakshina Kannada, especially in cemeteries, temples, and on the premises of various churches, is now all set to turn the surroundings of the Pacchanady dumping yard green with different species of trees.

Under the Smart City project, as many as 10,000 saplings including Jackfruit, Mango Sandalwood, were sanctioned to Mangaluru city and most of the plants were given to Jeeth Milan Roche, who is now planting them in the Pachanady dumping yard.

Pachanady dumping yard was in the news last year after the people living in this area were forced to leave their homes after waste materials from the dumping yard started entering the residential area. The area had faced heavy rainfall which resulted in the saturation of the garbage. With the fear of catching fatal diseases and infections, over 30 locals have abandoned their houses as the garbage was emanating a foul smell which was making it difficult for them to breathe.

Speaking to Udayavani, Jeeth Milan Roche said, “I have been planning plants since 2004 and this year I’m concentrating more on the most infamous dumping yard of Mangaluru. Around 350 tonnes of waste is being dumped here every day which has resulted in the foul smell around the area. We are now trying to create a buffer zone around the dumping yard so that we can reduce the foul smell in this area.”

“We are planting over 73 varieties of fruits and medicinal plants which can help the animals and birds in the future. Saplings were strategically planted using the Miyawaki method, which involves growing a great number of saplings within a small area. This, in turn, produces a dense forest. In a normal planting technique, you could have about 400 plants per acre. But in the Miyawaki method, we grow 10,000. Not only does this technique allow effective utilization of land, but it also makes the trees more resilient to storms and high-velocity winds,” he added.

“These plants were handed to me free of cost by the forest department and smart city project. I like to plant the sapling in places where humans don’t go so the plant won’t get trouble from anyone,” he added.

Jeeth has earned fame because of his untiring endeavor in planting trees for many years. He keeps planting the saplings all the 365 days of the year and then gets involved with taking care of them with the support of his family.