By Our Correspondent
BHUBANESWAR: Chief Minister of Odisha, Naveen Patnaik, has on Tuesday launched the Sri Sathya Sai Prema Tharu Programme, a laudable initiative by Sri Sathya Sai Trust, Odisha, and the Sri Jagannatha Service Foundation to plant and maintain at least 10 lakh trees in Odisha by 2025.
The programme was held at the Kalinga Stadium, Bhubaneswar, on 18th July . Expressing his happiness at the initiative, the Chief Minister stated that trees play an important role in the preservation of human life. Being at the forefront of environmental preservation in India, Odisha will further promote the environment and the well-being of the people by planting one million trees.
The Sri Jagannatha Service Foundation is a charitable organization involved in promoting charitable activities in Odisha. The Foundation was established by a group of youngsters comprising Sri Abhinav Krishna Jasthi, Sri Kritin Kodali, Sri Prithvi Prasad, and Ms. Prakruthi Motaparthi. The Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations are carrying out numerous charitable activities in the State of Odisha.
Welcoming the gathering, Sri Abhinav Krishna Jasthi, President of Sri Jagannatha Service Foundation, stated that considering the need to safeguard the environment from the perils of climate change and the threat of global warming, the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust has taken an initiative to plant one crore trees across India by Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba’s birth centenary on 23rd November 2025, under the banner of Sri Sathya Sai Prema Tharu.
As part of this initiative, the Sri Sathya Sai Trust, Odisha, and the Sri Jagannatha Service Foundation have come forward to plant and maintain 10 lakh trees in Odisha by 2025. In this context, he mentioned that active support is being received from the Government of Odisha, in the form of sapling supply and making vacant lands available in Government schools, colleges, hospitals, etc., for plantation.
He further stated that each tree planted under this program will be considered an act of devotion to the Divine Creator and a sacred responsibility towards preserving Mother Nature. The trees planted will be geo-tagged and uploaded on the website of Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations, along with their photographs.
He also mentioned that in February 2023, the Sri Sathya Sai Trust and the Sri Jagannatha Service Foundation, along with the American Heart Association and AIIMS Bhubaneswar, conducted a program to train 2,500 police personnel and students in Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) in the presence of the Chief Minister, who also launched the program to train two lakh people in CPR across the state by 2025 and thereby help save many precious lives. The CPR training program is progressing well, he stated.
Speaking on the occasion, Dr. Sathya Swaroop Patnaik, President of the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations, Odisha, outlined the large-scale charitable activities being carried out by the Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust and related organizations across the world. At the behest of his mother, Smt. Eswaramma, Bhagawan Sri Sathya Sai Baba initiated tremendous charitable activities across the world during his lifetime, in various fields including education, health services, drinking water, skill development, rural development, provision of food to the poor and needy, etc.
His universal message of “Love All, Serve All” and “Help Ever, Hurt Never” continues to inspire countless volunteers worldwide to collectively join together and engage in selfless service, he stated. Bhagawan Baba has set up mammoth charitable humanitarian projects, including a world-class university, two super specialty hospitals, and a massive drinking water project in the rural hinterland, all providing the best services totally free of cost to thousands of villages.
Outlining the activities of the Sri Sathya Sai Trust, Odisha, he stated that the Trust has set up 25 reverse osmosis plants in 6 districts to provide pure drinking water to over 40,000 beneficiaries every day. Nearly 450 villages have been adopted by the Sri Sathya Sai Seva Organizations, Odisha, to transform them into model villages. In 2008, when heavy floods ravaged coastal Odisha, the Trust built over 1,000 homes for the affected. The Sri Sathya Sai Trust, Odisha, runs 18 schools in different parts of Odisha and a women’s college where more than 8,000 students receive holistic, value-based education.
The Trust also runs 6 skill development centers to empower rural youth towards self-employment. More than 10,000 children receive moral and value-based education through Sri Sathya Sai Bal Vikas, thanks to the relentless efforts of more than 1,000 trained Gurus. More than 20000 active Sri Sathya Sai Seva Dal workers are involved in various charitable activities in Odisha.
Proposing a Vote of Thanks, Sri Krishna Kishore Jasthi IRS, Principal Director of Income Tax (Investigation) and coordinator of the event, stated that all efforts will be made to exceed the target of planting and maintaining over a million trees in Odisha by 2025. He emphasized that the challenges of global warming and climate change can be mitigated through massive tree plantation and environmental protection.
