Mitra Van to be set up in Uttar Pradesh’s 35 border districts

The Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh has announced a major initiative to establish ‘Mitra Van’ in the 35 districts of the states that share a border with other states, Union Territory and Nepal. Under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2024, extensive tree planting will be done to establish ‘Mitra Van’ in these 35 districts.

Along with ‘Mitra Van,’  special forests like ‘Shakti Van,’ ‘Yuva Van,’ and ‘Bal Van’ will also be established in each district under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan 2024.

Who will implement the Plantation Drive?

• The Uttar Pradesh Forest Department is the nodal agency for implementing the Mitra Van scheme under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2024.
• During the tree plantation programme, the forest department of Uttar Pradesh will coordinate with the representatives of the neighbouring states, UT and Nepal, and engage them in this drive.
• The forest department will also obtain the opinion of the representatives of neighbouring states, UT and Nepal on the species of trees to be planted and will ensure the availability of the plant species at the forest division. 
• The location of the sapling plantation is the responsibility of the identified 35 forest divisions, and they will also select the plant species for the plantation to be done.

Target under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan 2024

The forest department has set a target of planting 35 crore saplings in the identified 35 districts, with the planting to be completed by 20 July 2024. 

Districts to be Covered under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2024

Uttar Pradesh shares its boundaries with 8 States, one Union Territory (UT), Delhi and an international border with Nepal.  Following are the identified 35 districts of Uttar Pradesh where tree plantation will be undertaken under the Vriksharopan Jan Abhiyan-2024:

Saharanpur, Muzaffarnagar, Bijnor, Moradabad, Mathura, Aligarh, Noida,, Rampur, Bareilly, Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri, Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharthnagar, Maharajganj, Kushinagar, Deoria, Ballia, Ghazipur, Chandauli and Sonbhadra, Mirzapur, Prayagraj, Chitrakoot, Banda, Mahoba, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Jalaun, Etawah, Agra, Ghaziabad, Baghpat, and Shamli.

Uttar Pradesh District touching other States, UT and Nepal

The following are the districts of Uttar Pradesh that touch the boundaries of the neighbouring states of UT and Nepal.

• District touching Nepal (7):  Pilibhit, Lakhimpur Kheri, Bahraich, Shravasti, Balrampur, Siddharth Nagar, Maharajganj.
• Districts touching Bihar (8): Sonbhadra, Chandauli, Ghazipur, Ballia, Deoria, Kushinagar, and Maharajganj.
• Jharkhand (1): Sonbhadra
• Chhattisgarh(1): Sonbhadra
• Uttrakhand (7): Saharanpur, Muzaffar Nagar, Bijnor, Moradabad, Rampur, Bareli, and Pilibhit.
• Madhya Pradesh(11): Agra, Etawah, Jalaun, Jhansi, Lalitpur, Mahoba, Banda, Chitrakoot, Prayagraj (formerly Allahabad), Mirzapur, and Sonbhadra,
• Haryana(6): Saharanpur, Shamli, Bagpat, Gautam Buddha Nagar, Aligarh, and Mathura
• Delhi(2):  Ghaziabad, Gautam Buddha Nagar
• Himachal Pradesh (1): Saharanpur 
• Rajasthan(2): Agra and Mathura