225 kilometre journey to save the ending forests in Rajasthan

Tags: Environment State News

A unique journey of 225 kilometres was taken out from remote villages and hamlets of western Rajasthan. It ended at Jaisalmer district headquarters last week. The purpose of the journey was to demand the protection of the Oran or the sacred groves.

Important facts

• The participants travelled 225 km with a pledge to preserve the sacred groves as a lifeline for the desert.

• This raised a strong demand for the protection of Oran or the sacred groves that are facing the threat of destruction.

• The Oran or sacred groves face the threat of destruction as their land is being allocated for renewable energy infrastructure and high-tension power lines.

• Great Indian Bustards have died during the last few years because of collisions with power lines.

About Oran or the sacred groves

• 'Orans’ are community forests that act as a store of biodiversity, enable effective water management and serve as a community based regeneration system.

• Oran has a rich diversity of traditional flora and fauna and water bodies and is considered sacred and protected by the local people.

• It also ensures sustainable extraction of Non-Timber Forest Produce (NTFPs) by villagers, in the world’s oldest Aravali Mountain Range and in the Great Indian Desert of Rajasthan.

• Sacred groves have been a living expression of man's historical, cultural and emotional attachment to forests.

• Oran also forms the natural habitat for India's most critically endangered bird, the Great Indian Bustard.